How to Hide the Emperor's Child - Chapter 5

A potion that turns the eyes into blue.

Although Astelle has tested it with her own eyes every day for the past few years, the potion has been safe with no pain or side effects.

However, if there was a drawback, the duration was too short.

In about half a day, the effect was over.

Astelle weighed the amount while shaking the bottle.

‘I think it’s still enough until I go to the capital.’

After that, she has no choice but to make it herself.

Fortunately, she learned how to deal with herbs while helping Gretel, and she learned how to make various potions.

This eye color-changing potion can be created if it is specially studied and perfectly formulated.

If she had the herbs she needed, Astelle could make that.

The best way to meet her maternal grandfather in the middle is to ask Kaizen’s permission. Then she should send back her grandfather with Theor to the East.

Suddenly, the carriage stopped rattled.

Astelle put the potion back into her arms.

“What’s going on?”

“We’re going to take a break for a while. You can come out of the carriage.”

Hearing that, Theor opened his eyes and stood up.

The eyes full of drowsiness looking up at Astelle were still blue.

“Are you hungry? Shall we go outside?”

“I want to go outside!”

He was stuck on the carriage and repeatedly slept and woke up, he was probably bored.

Theor tried to get down to the floor to put on his shoes.

“Okay. Let’s go out and see what’s around. I’ll give you a snack too.”

“Yeah!”

Astelle put shoes on his little feet.

She picked up a small basket she had prepared in advance and opened the door of the carriage.

Knights and soldiers gathered on the side of the road to talk with each other or take a bottle of water and take a break.

It seemed that the rain had passed around here at dawn.

Astelle took the child and walked toward the trail near the forest road.

Theor took Astelle’s hand and walked the path where the leaves of grass sprouted.

The leaves of grass soaked in rainwater all night shined freshly in the sunlight.

On the forest road where small wildflowers bloomed, the fresh morning air after the rain and the smell of fragrant grass were circulating.

A brown-haired knight who found the two late followed and gave advice with serious faces.

“Lady, you can’t go too far.”

The man who followed was wearing a knight commander’s uniform.

Compared to his serious expression, he was a knight who still looked like a young man about 30 years old.

Even his soft light brown hair felt familiar.

Astelle realized who he was.

“Sir Lyndon? Sir Lyndon, right?”

“Oh……you remember me.”

Lyndon blinked his eyes in surprise.

Astelle smiled calmly.

“You have been by His Majesty’s side for a long time. How can I forget you.”

Lyndon admired it in his heart.

When the present emperor was the crown prince, Lyndon was a junior knight without a title.

He proved his skills and joined the Imperial Guard of the Crown Prince, but he did not see the light because of his poor background.

Only after Kaizen became the emperor was he able to establish his major and become an aide to the emperor.

Lyndon didn’t know Astelle would remember him.

At the time, she was Astelle von Reston, the prince’s fiancee, and a precious princess.

Lyndon hated the Duke of Reston at that time, but he had never felt particularly bad about Astelle.

Although he had never spoken in person, it was because he felt that she was a very calm and polite lady from a distance.

She was a precious princess, but she had never been rude to knights or servants.

Astelle walked a little farther from the road, and she laid a blanket on the rock next to the birch and sat Theor.

“I’m trying to give the child a snack, would you like to join in if you like it?”

“Pardon?”

She put down the basket that she brought and took out a small bottle of water and paper-wrapped food.

“I made it last night to sell today, but…… the stall aunty told me to take it and I got some.”

When Astelle unwrapped the paper, the tarts contained inside came out.

What Astelle took out was a comon strawberry tart with strawberries and whipped cream.

As soon as it took out of the basket, the sweet aroma of the crispy baked strawberry tart was full.

“You made this yourself……?”

Lyndon asked as if he couldn’t believe it.

Astelle replied with a nice smile, “Yes, I worked at the stall for a while.”

There was no maid in the mansion, so she had to make food herself.

In fact, for the first few months, making food, cleaning the house, and doing laundry was extremely difficult.

There were times when she nearly broke a bowl and burned the kitchen.

But human is an animal of adaptation.

Eventually, everything became familiar as time passed.

Astelle cut a small tart and handed it to Theor. He took a bite and ate it.

Astelle gave Lyndon a small tart as well.

The golden tart was full of shiny strawberries.

“Try it……”

“Yes, yes. Thank you.”

Lyndon received the tart from Estelle.

In fact, he was hungry from riding too long.

Anyway, this tart seemed very delicious on the outside.

Lyndon was dubious and took a bite.

Fresh strawberries mixed with sweet cream and crunchy tart paper were chewed.

“Oh my God, it’s really delicious!”

“I’m glad that it fits your tastes.”

Astelle laughed at the appearance of Lyndon eating up in no time at all.

***

Kaizen looked around and found Astelle far away.

Astelle was talking with Lyndon, the knight commander, on the side of the trail away from the road.

‘Do you know each other?’

Astelle was still wearing a shabby dress.

It seemed she had no clothes to change into, whether it was casual or outdoor wear.

‘Why are you being like that…..’

Astelle he remembers wasn’t like that.

She wore the most beautiful dresses, elegant jewelry that didn’t look vulgar even though it was flashy. She walked gracefully with her pale golden feet like the morning sun.

When he thought of Astelle, he always remembered her like that.

Astelle dressed up beautifully, sat calmly, and always replied to his question.

No matter how much he remembered her, he couldn’t remember her in a shabby appearance.

‘Probably because I have never observed her hard.’

No one denied that Astelle was a great empress.

She is intelligent, elegant, and has many talents in many ways.

She has a neat and beautiful appearance, discreet and modest personality.

But the young Kaizen had never liked such Astelle before.

From the time he first met her, Astelle has been set up to be Kaizen’s partner, but Kaizen hasn’t developed much affection for him.

He couldn’t help it.

In his view, Astelle was a doll made to become an empress.

Duke of Reston raised Astelle into a perfect doll.

The Duke taught her to study day and night so that she could be the best lady, and Astelle always to be absolutely submissive to her father.

Her father intended to make Astelle the empress and give birth to the future emperor.

If the emperor had died a little earlier, Kaizen would have called off the engagement, but it didn’t go as desired.

Kaizen wasn’t in a good mood when he was forced to marry and spend his first night with Astelle, though he used contraception to avoid having children.

Having an unconventional relationship with Astelle to play his role still remains a bitter memory.

Still, he thought it would be best to end the marriage as soon as possible, so once he became emperor, he divorced her.

When Astelle accepted the divorce, he was a little surprised, but he believes that even if she got divorced, she would live well.

No, actually, he had no time to worry about Astelle.

Because he had a lot of work to do as an emperor.

When he heard that she had been insulated from her family, he tried to send some money to her, but it was rejected.

After that, he almost forgot Astelle.

When he first looked for Astelle, none of the nobles of the capital knew where she was.

After he tracked down and investigated anyone involved, he got information that she was staying at the old Marquis’ house.

He was a man who lost his estate a long time ago, but he was still a noble with a high position, so Kaizen thought he would maintain a somewhat noble life.

In fact, he was a relative of the traitor, so Kaizen didn’t even know that his name was on the list of those deprived of pensions.

So he was shocked when Astelle, whom he met again after six years, appeared in rags-like clothes.

There wasn’t a common lace ornament on the shabby dress, let alone jewels.

It was worse than the clothes commoners wear.

Looking at her appearance, it seemed that she had lived a miserable life in her maternal grandfather’s house.

If she remarried a man, she wouldn’t live that bad.

The Marquis lived with his granddaughter and treated her like a maid without trying to marry her off.

That old man had no money to spend to find a nanny, so he left his family heir, a child, to Astelle.

Even when running away, he threw his heir to Astelle and left her alone.

‘I should torture and kill that old man.’

Kaizen thought so as he looked at Astelle.

Astelle, whom he met again after six years, was very different from what he remembered.