I had no memory since I fell down as my whole body relaxed when I saw the flickering flames.

I slept deeply without dreaming for a few days like that.

When I came to my senses, it was noisy around me.

I pinpointed Cardan’s voice without difficulty.

“Even after a few days, why is she still like this?”

It was a rough voice as if he barely suppressed his anger. The voice grew louder and clearer.

“It happened because of the temple candles, but isn’t it something to say that it’s okay because the flame is alive? Any solution–!”

“I understand your frustration, but there’s really nothing wrong with the candles…”

It seemed to be the high priest’s voice that followed. He responded calmly, but the shaking at the end of his voice seemed to have been pressed by Cardan’s spirit.

“As you know, Eleanor recovered a lot of energy after the flame revived. The doctor also said that Duke had only fallen asleep due to accumulated fatigue and had no health problems.”

“Healthy people can’t open their eyes yet?”

Cardan’s voice, which became sharper, held his breath.

I forced my eyes to open before the high priest burst into tears.

As soon as I lifted my stiff eyelids and blinked, Cardan, who noticed it quickly, ran to the bedside.

“Erina.”

“Your Majesty.”

He immediately handed me a glass of water.

“Drink it.”

When I drank the water calmly, my voice came out easier.

“I’m all right…….”

I was planning to tell the high priest not to say anything too much, but Cardan yelled again.

“How’s the candle?”

At the same time as he questioned the high priest, he beckoned his servant to call in a doctor.

“Now that she’s awake, are there any changes?”

“It’s the same.”

The high priest replied with a look as if he had taken a bite of an astringent persimmon.

“I don’t know why the candles that should be kept in the temple creft are in the palace.”

The high priest glanced at me with a slightly bumpy expression.

When I took Eleanor as a hostage and even stole the candles, I couldn’t say anything and only smiled ambiguously.

“As long as the flames remain, there is no problem with the Duke’s safety.”

As a courtesy, the high priest who looked back at my candle returned it to me with a slightly softened face.

And he lowered his voice so that only I could hear him and whispered.

“It seems God has forgiven you.”

It was a meaningful word as if he knew all about my past confession. Along with that, the high priest gave a warm smile.

Normally, I might have laughed at it as a joke, but I felt really forgiven for everything as I was still looking at the glowing candle.

“……Thank you.”

I’ve been staring at the dancing flame for so long.

There was a faint sound of a person suddenly crying because of what Cardan said, but I couldn’t do anything for the poor doctor, feeling like my heart was collapsing and overwhelmed at the same time.

It’s been a life that’s been in a rush to run away.

Turn a blind eye to mistakes, hide them, rationalize. In the end, I erased all my memories.

Maybe I was just trying to avoid dying instead of saving Eleanor.

But now that I’m alive again, I feel like I could face my sins properly in front of the shaking flame.

***

After sending all the doctors who had completed their respective duties, Cardan dragged a chair to my bedside as if it were natural.

“I’ll be watching for a few days, so take a rest.”

Cardan, who even opened a book next to him, crossed his legs.

I blinked because I didn’t readily understand what he said.

“…watching what?”

But Cardan replied in a strange way.

“You.”

“Why?!”

I shouted in surprise and coughed out.

Cardan frowned and poured me some water again.

“I have no choice but to keep an eye on you because of your condition.”

But I couldn’t understand it no matter how much I thought about it.

I questioned Cardan, ignoring the glass he handed me.

“What about the war? I don’t think the empire has been handed over to the Eslandic people because we’re alive, but there’s still an army of Esland in the north…….”

Under the circumstances, I think I’ve been asleep for about a week, but all the problems couldn’t have magically disappeared.

“What happened to Crown Prince Momad and the Empress Dowager? How’s your condition? I need to figure out how the alternative situation is going so that I can clean up the mess.”

Cardan turned over a book with a relaxed face.

“Everything is going well.”

It was a completely unreliable behavior.

“I think I’ll be able to deal with it only when I know how it’s going well.”

“Well, I will take care of it.”

In this situation, Cardan waved his hand while looking at his book “Secret of the Long-Living Man without Disease,” which is not even a state-run report.

Apparently, the word “monitoring” literally means he’s going to be here, but he’s too relaxed for someone who does it on his own.

“What are you going to do here on your own? What about the Cabinet meeting? What are you going to do about the war?”

Cardan took a ball of cotton from his pocket and put it in his earhole.

“Hah……”

Cardan smiled and told me with his mouth as he grinned. “Come on.”

I leaned back on the bed, barely holding back the urge to hit my forehead with my palm.

As soon as I lay down, I realized again.

That the story of the emperor, who shut himself up with his concubine in the bedroom and ruined the empire, may not be delusions of grandeur.

Was I not feeling well yet, as Cardan said? Before I could think more, I quickly fell asleep.

Still, while I was staying around in bed for a few days, Cardan handled various documents and sometimes received war reports from his officials outside the door.

As a result of pretending to sleep and eavesdropping and peeping, I roughly understood how things were going.

First, Momad died at Cardan’s hands.

As soon as Cardan, who witnessed the flame of my candle dying, rushed back to the palace, the duel between the two ended in vain.

Funny how Momad bragged about killing Cardan.

Shortly after I collapsed, Cardan appeared, and it turned out that the signatory to appoint the Empress Dowager as the emperor’s agent was useless, and that Janette’s child was also not from the imperial family.

The Empress Dowager took him for not knowing anything, but she ended up in an underground prison. Janet was also detained in her palace.

Esland, who lost its commander in an instant, quickly withdrew from the Count of Gesbahn.

What remained was the punishment of the Empress Dowager’s trial and the nobles who signed the petition.

At first, I felt good that things were solved on their own without me running around.

Contrary to my concern, the empire seems to be working well without me.

Cardan was a surprisingly capable leader who pretended to be a tyrant, and at the same time, he even handled the affairs of the prime minister on his own.

Maybe that’s why. Except for the first few days of fun, I gradually fell into strange feelings.

I’ve been really useless to the empire.

It was a depressing realization.

I’ve been trying to save the empire for the past year, but I shouldn’t have ruined it in the first place.

“What’s wrong with you?”

Not looking at the papers, Cardan insinuated.

“Problem, no.”

Contrary to my words, a sigh poured out.

Cardan put down the papers.

When he stared at me, I pretend to look at the scenery out of the window.

“How are you feeling?”

“It’s okay, except for the pain I’m trying to keep lying down.”

Cardan grinned at my blunt answer.

“Then can I ask you for something?”

“Ha, I knew this would happen.”

The word ‘please’ raised me up right away.

“What’s the problem? Are your finances messed up? The damage to the count is worse than you thought? Enough to need help?”

Cardan shook his head and I flicked my finger.

“It’s a matter for the aristocracy. They don’t want to cooperate? I have a record of the weaknesses of each aristocratic family in my office. Do you want me to take it?”

“No.”

Every time I added a word, Cardan’s smile deepened for some reason. It was a rather unpleasant look.

Being grumpy for no reason, I closed my eyes as I lay back.

“Never mind. If it’s nothing, do whatever you want.”

“I need your help.”

When Cardan caught me right away, I reluctantly opened my eyes pretending to listen.

“Once again, the Empress Dowager is the problem. She attempted to represent me for the Empire. There was no way to dispute her claim that she’s being threatened by Prince Momad that day.”

I nodded.

“That’s right. At that time, I felt like she was going to sacrifice her life for the Empire.”

“This time again, we should prevent her from escaping like a loach.”

Cardan leaned against the chair and frowned. Then he carefully opened his mouth.

“Would you like to meet her?”

“Should I?”

I opened my mouth wide pretending to yawn.

“Oh, maybe it’s time to take a nap, but I’m a little tired…”

Then I glanced at Cardan.

“Do you need my help?”

Cardan raised his eyebrows as if he knew my words.

“Isn’t the Duke the only one who can solve this problem?”

I burst into laughter at his question.

“Then there’s nothing we can do. Let me see her.”

As soon as I answered, my body suddenly lifted into the air.

“W, what is it?”

I looked at Cardan, who suddenly hugged me with an absurd face, and he only smiled deftly.

“You’re still a patient, so I’ll take you to the place where the Empress Dowager is.”