Eliana parted ways with Rube in a bad mood.

The shape of a snake trying to swallow gold with its mouth wide open.

It’s a mark she recalls seeing somewhere but couldn’t remember exactly where.

Eliana arrived at the central palace with many thoughts roaming her mind.

The bedroom was empty since Verkley had gone to a previous meeting.

Eliana flopped into an empty chair.

‘Eliana, can I ask you for a favor?’

‘Yes. Go ahead, princess.’

‘It’s…’

Mary shrank back and held out a card. It was an invitation to the debut.

‘Please give this to His Majesty.’

Mary gave an invitation to Eliana, the same as in the novel.

She couldn’t ask Verkley directly, so she went to Eliana.

Of course, the emperor should’ve already been invited to the debut, but not in this novel.

In the novel, Eliana immediately tore up the invitation because she was on Hera’s side.

Hera didn’t want Verkley going to the debut.

But she wasn’t the old Eliana.

As soon as she received the invitation, she gave it to Verkley.

It was because it was more important to gain trust from him than Hera.

Besides, Hera didn’t say a word about the invitation, so there was no reason why she couldn’t rush to him.

Of course, she felt sorry for Mary.

This might easily give Verkley an alibi and take her power.

But even in the novel, when he did not receive an invitation, Mary still lost her power.

So one more invitee doesn’t make a difference.

He’ll take Mary’s power, whether Eliana delivers the invitation or not.

Verkley’s expression upon receiving the invitation was subtle. He didn’t expect to receive one.

It was similar to when Mary handed over the invitation to Eliana.

Awkwardness toward each other.

There seemed to be another incident between them that did not appear in the first part.

Next to the bedroom was the robe Verkley would wear tomorrow.

It arrived only today as Hera later discovered he would attend and had it produced.

Even so, as he was the emperor, she still took great consideration of the robe’s decorations and details.

Eliana was fiddling with his robe when he returned to the bedroom.

“You’re back, Your Majesty?”

Eliana quickly approached him and took his hand.

He seemed to have a bad expression, so she spoke to him implicitly.

“What else did the nobles say?”

“They’re always like that.” Verkley rubbed his forehead with a bitter smile.

He looked very tired.

Eliana suggested with a bright smile. “The robe has arrived. Would you like to try it on?”

“I can’t see it anyway. How should I check it?”

“It’s just in case. I’ll take a look.”

“Alright.” Verkley reluctantly agreed to Eliana’s persistence.

When Eliana called for a maid, two maids entered the bedroom, drew the curtains, and dressed Verkley from within.

Eliana sat in a chair and waited for him to come out.

‘I feel like a man waiting for his girlfriend to try on her wedding dress or something…’

Moments later, the curtains opened with Verkley in his robe.

His face was more exposed because his hair was tied up.

He was more perfect than she could imagine dressed in a robe tailored specifically for him.

“Oh… Well.”

Eliana pursed her lips and didn’t know what to do.

The atmosphere was quite different from usual. Since he was always wearing loose indoor clothing, it felt fresher because of the big contrast.

Verkley asked in a low voice. “Does it not suit me?”

“No, it’s not that!”

“So then aren’t you saying anything?”

“It’s just… *Your clothes are your wings.”

[ *T/N: Korean saying that can mean “clothes make the man” in English. ]

“What do you mean?” Verkley tilted his head.

“Ah, I mean it looks good on you!” Eliana explained.

For some reason, it felt like Verkley would shine even if he was dressed in a rag.

Eliana giggled at the thought, imagining him wearing a rag.

‘That’s why it’s said that the completion of fashion is the face.’

“Your Majesty looks good with his hair up.”

“…”

With his hair tied up to suit the robe, he no longer looked innocent and instead looked sharp.

“Then, let’s get you dressed again, Your Majesty.” The maid next to him spoke stiffly.

And the curtains were pulled shut again without a response to Eliana’s words.

Eliana licked her lips with regret.

* * *

It’s the day of the debut.

Eliana visited Mary’s palace early in the morning.

She left after she hurriedly said hello to Verkley, telling him she’d see him at the ceremony later.

“You could’ve taken your time.”

“I was afraid I’d be late because I had many places to stop by.”

Eliana smiled at Mary’s faint scolding and pretended to be fine.

Mary looked worried as she wiped the sweat off Eliana’s forehead with a hand towel.

But Eliana politely refused and wiped her face herself.

It was because the ladies-in-waiting next to them had noticed.

“Come and sit down, Eliana.”

Mary offered her a seat with a grin. In response, Eliana slumped into the chair.

Since the morning, she was busy getting the items she reserved.

She could’ve ordered other maids to do it, but that was only possible if she were close to another person.

Eliana has only been with Verkley ever since she came to the palace.

No other maid has served Eliana because she stayed with him.

Basically, she was on her own.

Of course, she was not a noble by nature, so she could manage on her own just fine.

However, dressing for the ceremony was not something she could do alone.

For that reason, Mary said she would send someone to the central palace, but she refused.

Since she had to go to the main palace anyway, it was better to make the trip and get dressed together.

The two ladies-in-waiting joined Mary and Eliana and began dressing them up.

They finely powdered her face and painted her lips beautifully.

A little less flashy than Mary’s outfit, but she wore a blue dress suitable for her blonde hair.

“You’re so pretty, princess,” Eliana uttered her admiration while she watched Mary.

Mary’s gaze drifted to Eliana, and her eyes widened.

“Eliana, you’re so pretty. Blue looks good on you, too. Don’t you think, Cherdi?”

“Yes, I bet everyone would believe you two are sisters.” 

The lady-in-waiting in charge of Mary’s dress smiled.

Cherdi Pepper. Mary’s exclusive maid. Even if the two were daughters of counts, their reputations were different.

“I’m flattered, Young Lady Pepper.”

Cherdi shrugged as Eliana smiled.

Then, Kallius arrived with a knock.

Kallius stared at Mary in her dress, mesmerized and enchanted.

He probably fell in love again.

Eliana inwardly smirked at his stupid face.

Why can’t he realize his feelings when he’s so happy? This is why men who don’t express themselves are prone to misunderstanding.

Eliana went to Kallius’s side and grinned softly.

“Isn’t the princess beautiful?”

“Don’t cause a fuss.”

“Princess, the duke is so pretty,” Eliana spoke regardless of his warning.

Kallius glanced at her, tired of her confident manner, but Eliana merely shrugged.

She was familiar with his attitude now because they often encountered each other while preparing for the debut.

Kallius never threatened Eliana after he realized she was in Mary’s favor.

‘I still don’t like him… Well, it doesn’t matter. Mary likes me, so what can he do?’

Eliana looped her arm through Mary’s, wanting to fully enjoy the feeling of being a fox on the back of a tiger.

“The Duke must be shy. You don’t talk much?”

“Ha.” Kallius let out an irritated sigh. He was very tired of facing Eliana in the morning.

He answered, pinching the bridge of his nose.

“It’s only now that you choose to be irritating. When will you stop being smug, Young Lady?”

“Oh, come on, Eliana’s just being comfortable with you, Kal. Be friendly.”

“You know very well how I feel about her, princess!”

“…” 

Eliana turned to Mary with a thrilled face.

Mary gave a big smile.

The only one that couldn’t smile was Kallius.

Eliana snuggled into Mary’s arms as he tossed her a look of disapproval.

She wiggled her eyebrows and smiled triumphantly.

‘Well, I’ll give him a break.’

Eliana shut her mouth and rolled her eyes.

It was a peaceful day.

* * *

The Summer Palace was crowded with people.

The invited nobles sat in their designated seats, where their names were written.

Nobles whispered here and there, perhaps because the ceremony was held near the lake of the Summer Palace.

Everyone focused on the ceremony venue.

“They’re openly showing she will receive divine power.”

“If she receives divine power, she will become a strong candidate for emperor. It is a pity that her fiancé is Duke Harpons.”

“Aren’t we the only ones being too fussy? What if she truly receives divine power? I wonder if we should switch to the Empress Dowager.”

“Hey, man. No matter how desperate you are, how can you take a foreign woman as your emperor?”

“That’s true, but… there should be a way, another method.”

“Whatever we do, we must choose the empress and see her husband soon. At this rate, that red-haired mother and daughter will eat up this empire.”

“How can you entrust imperial affairs to a mixed-blooded child? It’s absurd.”

There was a lot of talk about the mixed-blooded child and the foreign woman.

Eliana frowned at the frank whispering.

She wondered what on earth Mary had done wrong.

The nobles were not interested in Eliana.

The only thing that stood out was her face, even more so because she was from an insignificant family.

‘I came to observe the ceremony, but I can only hear gossip.’

The moment Eliana lost her mood, she turned, about to make her way back to Mary, when someone spoke to her.