I’m in Trouble Because The Emperor Thinks My Time is Limited - Chapter 1

I raised my hand to stop the surge of blood rising within me, but it didn’t help much. The blood I had desperately tried to hold back leaked through my fingers that covered my mouth. The smell of iron stung my nose as the warm, unpleasant sensation spread across my palm and lips.

‘No.’

My vision blurred, perhaps because my pupils had widened in shock. My mind was full of one thought: Not now. But unfortunately, my body betrayed me. When I opened my mouth to deny it, the blood pooled inside spilled uncontrollably.

The dark circles under my eyes trembled faintly.

“……”

There was no room left for excuses. It was clear to anyone watching what was happening. As expected, Sionel’s face, as he watched me, turned pale. His skin, usually like white jade, now appeared sickly, as if he were unwell.

“Lindel.”

The first words out of the emperor’s mouth after I coughed up blood were my name. Until that moment, his voice had pressed me to tell the truth, but now it wavered, like a candle about to go out. He was afraid.

“…No.”

Even though I knew it was too late, people are like that. I threw out the words, hoping for a miracle, but the sight of the emperor’s face contorting in real-time told me I had made the wrong choice. Why do humans always repeat the same mistakes?

I wanted to slap my forehead for my stupidity, but doing that might lead to another misunderstanding—like the last time when they thought I was hurting myself. Ridiculous. Me, self-harming? That would never happen. I treasured myself more than anything in this world. Words like self-love and self-esteem were created for someone like Lindel Bodebachne.

Me, self-harm? The people of this country had clearly lost their minds. Ah, I was so flustered that my thoughts had started to drift again.

Anyway, I had no such hobbies as self-harm or suicide.

“Lindel.”

I had been lost in thought for a moment, and Sionel called my name again. Looking at him now, he seemed more like the one who was about to collapse. His eyes wandered over my blood-soaked face and hands.

“Your Majesty.”

My voice sounded like it was fading. It had deflated like a balloon with a puncture, making even me cringe. Sionel’s eyes welled up with tears. I swear, I had never seen him cry before. Should I be happy that he’s crying for me, or should I be sad?

At one point, I had wanted to make him cry, just once, but this was definitely not the situation I had hoped for.

“I’m not dying.”

Fearing that I was too late, I spoke firmly. My voice was dry and weak, but it was the best I could muster. However, my efforts did little to change the situation.

“You’re not dying.”

His tear-filled eyes burned with determination. His voice was solemn, even resolute.

“You can’t die, Lindel.”

No, really, I’m not going to die. Before I could say anything else, he stepped forward, closing the distance between us. His handsome face was now so close that my body stupidly held its breath. In this ridiculous situation, my heart began to pound. What a terrible, dramatic love story this was turning out to be.

Sionel grabbed my shoulders and pulled me into his chest. For the first time, I found myself in his broad arms, and my mind went blank. For a brief moment, I thought, This isn’t so bad, despite the misunderstanding.

But when he pulled away, and I saw the madness in his eyes, my foolish thoughts quickly disappeared. Sionel’s eyes were far from normal. He looked crazy.

“Your Majesty, I—”

“You will never—”

The moment I tried to speak, he cut me off again, unable to wait. The feeling of dread settled in. Judging by those crazed eyes, what was coming next would be far from good.

No, you lunatic. Someone please stop his mouth.

“No one will ever take you away from me.”

He finally said it. His handsome face now emanated a sense of dangerous obsession.

As if that wasn’t enough, he repeated it fiercely, almost chewing out the words.

“No one can take you away, not even death.”

“……”

“Not even you can steal yourself away from me, Lindel.”

Sionel’s words sounded like something straight out of a tragic romance novel. It baffled me how someone who never so much as glanced at romantic stories could say something like this. If he wasn’t quoting it from a book, it meant he was serious. I felt like I was going to lose my mind.

At this point, I wondered, Why are emperors so stubborn? Throughout history, emperors have always only said what they wanted to say and only heard what they wanted to hear.

I wasn’t going to die. I never intended to. But everything was spiraling out of control.

My face twisted in frustration.

“From this moment, Lindel Bodebachne is stripped of her title as a knight and confined to the northern palace. No one will set foot there without my permission, and no one will leave.”

Despite the tears streaming down his cheeks, Sionel’s voice was cold. His tears expressed sorrow for me, yet his eyes and lips conveyed hatred.

The knights who had been waiting outside the door burst in the moment the emperor’s decree was issued. Their grim faces turned toward me. Seeing all the familiar faces left me too exhausted to resist.

If I refused, they would have dragged me by force, but the injustice was almost too much to bear.

As I was led out by the knights, I turned back to see Sionel still glaring at me. His transparent tears continued to fall, showing no sign of stopping.

How did things end up like this?

***

In the year 196 of the Imperial Calendar, on the sixth month of the Sun, at the hottest noon, I was imprisoned by the emperor’s decree. It happened the day before I was due to retire from my position as a knight.