Page 434 of Remarried Empress

In front of me, Kapmen’s friend’s expression seemed to say, ‘I think I know who you are.’ At the same time, I was aware that Sovieshu was on my left, and we briefly made eye contact. I clenched my jaw nervously.

I had asked Kapmen to find out whether it was really Sovieshu. Where has he gone?

As my heart started to pound faster, Dolshi asked with his wide smile.

“Do you need my help?”

‘What does he mean?’

No, there was no doubt what he meant. Anyone with average intelligence would have noticed that I deliberately hid my face with my fan to avoid the man who had just come up the stairs.

Rather than answer, I stood up while keeping the fan over my face.

Although I was puzzled to have met Sovieshu at this cafe, I didn’t want to make a scene in a public place, so I had to leave.

There was also no need for Grand Duke Kapmen’s friend to witness an unpleasant meeting.

“I hope we will meet again soon.”

I realized that I had acted too formally as I tried to hide my discomfort, but I had already turned away. If I were to look back now to correct my words it would be even stranger.

As if nothing was wrong, I walked with my back straight past Sovieshu without looking at him. He was standing on the stairs leading to the third floor.

I hoped that Sovieshu would stand still, but he chased after me.

I kept going without looking back.

I ran into Grand Duke Kapmen on the stairs to the first floor. When he looked past me, shock flashed across his face. I supposed they hadn’t crossed paths on the way.

“Miss Navi.”

“I’ll go now.”

I spoke casually and continued down the stairs.

But Sovieshu was still after me and I heard him call out to me in a low voice just before I entered the carriage.

“Navier.”

Now my name is not Navier, my name is ‘Navi’, so for once, I could ignore him.

I quickly got into the carriage, but as I was about to close the door, Sovieshu reached out and grabbed it.

“Navier.”

Viscount Langdel, whom I had brought as an escort, could not deal with Sovieshu due to his status. However, if Sovieshu tried to harm me, he would have a reason to intervene.

“Navier.”

Sovieshu smiled gently as he firmly gripped the carriage door. He looked like a lunatic.

“You went out to have fun?”

“If you know I went out to enjoy myself, why are you bothering me? Can’t you pretend we don’t know each other?”

“Do you mind if I come with you?”

“What for?”

“It would help my recovery.”

“No. No way.”

I spoke firmly but he wouldn’t budge. I hesitated for a moment, and then slammed his fingers with my fan, but not too hard.

“Ow!”

Sovieshu quickly removed his hand and looked at me in surprise as if he could not believe what had just happened.

I quickly closed the carriage door and knocked on the front wall.

“Let’s go.”

***

A strange thought crossed my mind just before the carriage entered the Imperial Palace. I knocked on the front wall of the carriage to order the coachman to stop. Then I crossed my arms and rested my head against the seat in a comfortable position.

Earlier, I was so shocked to meet Sovieshu that my mind was in chaos, to the point that I didn’t know what to think.

Now that I was away from him, I became curious. I was at the cafe to meet Kapmen’s friend, but why was Sovieshu there?

I had wondered before if Sovieshu came to the Western Empire to investigate the phenomenon of mana decline. Could that be the reason why he went to that cafe?

After thinking about it for a while, I opened the carriage window and spoke to Viscount Langdel, who was escorting me on a horse.

“Viscount Langdel, can you hide near the cafe we just left to find out about Emperor Sovieshu’s movements?”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

***

Once I returned to my room, I asked Countess Jubel to inquire about Sovieshu’s condition.

While I drank a cup of tea, Countess Jubel came back and reported,

“I was told that he went out for a while to get some fresh air.”

Heinley had said he would keep an eye on Sovieshu personally. I knew it would be difficult for Heinley to follow him at all times due to his busy schedule. However, why didn’t he have someone else keeping an eye on Sovieshu today?

As I drank a second cup of tea deep in thought, Rose asked anxiously.

“How did it go, Your Majesty? Was that man very rude?”

Rose and the other ladies-in-waiting had no idea that I had run into Sovieshu.

“Grand Duke Kapmen’s friend refused to teach me because it would be a nuisance. Nothing can be done about his rudeness.”

“Oh, my! Didn’t he want to help Your Majesty?! How could he think it is a nuisance to teach Your Majesty?!”

“Even if he doesn’t know that Your Majesty is the Empress, no one sane could ever think that Your Majesty is a nuisance!”

“We barely exchanged words. He didn’t even want to give me advice.”

In the end, he even let out a strange and ominous, ‘aha’.

But the disappointment that Kapmen’s friend was uninterested in teaching me magic wasn’t as bad as the fear that Sovieshu could have discovered something about the phenomenon of mana decline.

Although it would be sad not to master my magic.

I sighed and poured myself another cup of tea. Right now the priority was finding out what Sovieshu was up to.

Was Heinley still very busy? I’d like to discuss this with him.

“Your Majesty. I think you have had too much tea.”

“Wouldn’t it be better to drink another cup later?”

When I replied that tea wasn’t bad for my baby and lifted the cup of tea to my mouth, a great idea flashed through my mind,

“Mastas.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“I want you to do something…”

***

Viscount Langdel, who returned that night, said that Sovieshu had left the cafe by the time he returned, so he had to look for him around the capital. He said it was not easy to find Sovieshu because he had also used an ordinary carriage like me. But he did find him eventually, and…

“Sovieshu was in a seedy restaurant?”

“Yes.”

Sovieshu and a seedy restaurant. It didn’t fit at all. He was a very proud man… Did his memory loss diminish his sense of pride?

It was such improper behavior that I became suspicious. Could it be that there’s a huge secret about the phenomenon of mana decline hidden in that seedy restaurant?

As I thought about it, my unease grew and I asked urgently.

“What was he doing there?”

If Sovieshu had found evidence that implicated the Western Empire in the phenomenon of mana decline, he might be the one to declare war.

The war that had been Heinley’s lifelong dream, and he gave it up for me.

If Heinley were to start a war, it would only be due to a desire for conquest, but if Sovieshu used the phenomenon of mana decline as a pretext to start a war, then his cause might be considered just by neighboring countries, who could either decide to join the Eastern Empire, or stay out of it.

Viscount Langdel hesitated, unable to answer immediately.

“It’s alright. You may speak.”

Viscount Langdel finally confessed a little reluctantly.

“He was fighting.”

What?

“Fighting? Emperor Sovieshu …fighting? In a seedy restaurant? Or was it his knight…”

“Emperor Sovieshu was fighting personally.”

This was unexpected. Surprised, I bit my lower lip unconsciously.

After several strange thoughts, my suspicions arose again.

“Did Sovieshu fight against a man with good physique? I mean, did the man look like a knight in disguise?

Could it be that Heinley sent a man to watch Sovieshu, and when the latter noticed he fought against him? Or did he make a fuss on purpose to hide that he was investigating the phenomenon of mana decline?

“No, the man was a drunkard who spouted all sorts of vulgar insults. There was no indication that he was trained in combat.”

What’s going on? I was even more confused. Viscount Langdel sighed and then muttered with resignation.

“The drunkard was saying bad things about Your Majesty. Sovieshu couldn’t stand it, so he confronted him…”