Page 412 of Remarried Empress

The official looked at Heinley and I with his mouth slightly open and the log book tightly against his chest.

When I pointed towards the palace, Heinley’s eyes narrowed and a smile played on his lips. He leaned over to me.

“What do you want to check, My Queen?”

“I’ll check that you’re right in the head.”

“What?”

“Just come with me.”

I took Heinley to an empty room in the Imperial Palace, closed the door, and approached him.

After I nudged his chest to make him sit on the armchair, I examined his face from side to side with a firm gaze.

Heinley smiled at me as he squeezed the armrests.

“Huh? You don’t look like you want to check my head.”

Heinley asked the question with his beautiful purple eyes narrowed, then slowly opened them again as he took a deep breath.

His little gestures made me go crazy.

Rather than answer, I gently lifted his chin with my index finger and slowly brought his face close to mine.

Heinley didn’t resist and followed my lead. Our faces were close enough that we could feel each other’s breath.

Just as I started to think that what happened yesterday might have been a figment of my imagination, Heinley suddenly exclaimed as if he had remembered something.

“Ah!”

“What’s the matter?”

When I asked in bewilderment, Heinley hurriedly stood up and looked around.

“Come to think of it, I have some urgent business to attend to. I had forgotten.”

In an instant, the tense and erotic atmosphere vanished.

‘It seems that he has definitely avoided kissing me.’

Upset, I pushed Heinley back onto the armchair.

“My Queen?”

“Why are you avoiding me?”

“What?”

“Why do you avoid kissing me?”

Heinley’s eyes twitched, but I didn’t release him and pressed my knees against his thighs. I pushed his shoulders against the back of the armchair so that he couldn’t move as I moved closer.

As I watched him in that state, Heinley slowly opened his mouth.

“Queen… this is too hard for me. Stop.”

I frowned. Is it too hard? Is it so hard for him to be close to me? I felt sad and angry at the same time.

Heinley was also breathing heavily, as if trying to show how uncomfortable he was having my body so close to his.

‘Wait… why does he look like that? Are his cheeks flushed?’

Now that I looked at him carefully, he seemed to be… aroused…

At that moment, Heinley slowly stood up, and I could clearly see what he meant by ‘hard’.

I looked up awkwardly as I realized I had misunderstood him. He didn’t say it was hard because he didn’t like it.

On second thought, ever since the possibility that I was pregnant arose, we had slept holding hands. But these days, he wouldn’t even hold my hand.

So why? Why does he avoid me even though he’s so aroused when he is close to me?

“My Queen. To tell the truth, I received too many curses as we dealt with the Zemensia Family.”

Heinley began to confess reluctantly. Fortunately, he changed his mind and told me, but I was surprised.

“And because of that reason you have avoided me?”

“I am not avoiding you.”

“You don’t want to touch me.”

“My Queen, it really worries me to touch you in this state.”

“You punished those who deserved it. You don’t have to feel guilty.”

“Still, I’d prefer not to.”

I thought it was one of Heinley’s jokes, but he seemed to be serious. So I could only sigh.

“So, how long do you plan to do this?”

“Just one week.”

“One week?”

“I’m purifying my body with cold baths. I’ll do it for just one more week.”

I understood how Heinley felt, but… what I needed now was to feel his warmth and his skin. It bothered me that he didn’t want to touch me. However, I couldn’t object because he was doing it for me.

With a calm expression, I muttered that I understood, then I turned around and left the room.

***

Back in Heinley’s office, McKenna, who learned what had happened forty minutes ago, clicked his tongue and muttered.

“I worry that Her Majesty will be very displeased by this.”

Heinley plunged the tip of the pen into the ink bottle and asked,

“Does it worry you or entertain you?”

“Of course it’s the former.”

“Then why is your tone so cheerful?”

“… Is it so obvious? Should I be more subdued?”

When McKenna asked in a whisper, Heinley looked at him sullenly for a moment. McKenna chuckled.

Heinley shook his head and looked back at the documents waiting for his approval on the desk. While Navier was unconscious, Heinley fell behind because he was busy dealing with the Zemensia Family in every possible way. Now, he intended to fully resolve the backlog during this time in which he couldn’t touch Navier.

McKenna looked at his cousin with a worried expression, but Heinley didn’t notice because he had lowered his gaze.

‘All sorts of curses and insults were hurled at Empress Navier and her baby by the Zemensia family.’

At the time, Heinley treated all those words as nonsense and showed no mercy. But apparently, he had been affected.

‘Heinley isn’t usually afraid of such things.’

A knock on the door brought McKenna out of his thoughts.

“Come in.”

At Heinley’s permission, a servant entered and reported,

“Your Majesty, Crow has returned from the Eastern Empire.”

As soon as Heinley nodded, the servant left, and an intelligent looking man with dark hair and eyes entered.

Crow entered and exchanged greetings with McKenna before approaching Heinley’s desk.

“You’re finally back.”

Heinley glanced up briefly and greeted the man politely, then returned his attention to the documents. Still, he continued talking to the man.

“How did it go?”

“The Eastern Empire is in chaos right now. After that woman was deposed, she was locked in a tower, in which she died, and Emperor Sovieshu was injured during a fit in which he saw hallucinations.”

“What hallucinations?”

“I couldn’t find out.”

McKenna murmured.

“I thought that had been a lie so that Miss Evely would return as soon as possible. I suppose it wasn’t a lie.”

Heinley added, his voice devoid of emotion,

“Yes. It seems he really has been injured.”

Heinley didn’t care if he was injured. In fact, they all had similar thoughts, so Heinley soon asked.

“What about Duke Elgy?”

“He headed to the port, but I don’t know the details because I was focused on the Imperial Palace.”

“Good job. He’s sure to visit his mother after some time sailing the sea.”