I’m in Trouble Because The Emperor Thinks My Time is Limited - Chapter 42

The heat that had been tormenting me vanished immediately after Utilia’s aura dissipated. The trembling in my hands, which had shaken uncontrollably due to the strange heat, also subsided before I realized it. This allowed me to grasp one thing: this peculiar heat responded to ‘aura,’ regardless of whose aura it was.

Up until now, I hadn’t noticed, since those around me had always been cautious in my presence, but the heat’s intense reaction to Utilia’s aura was very real.

Thankfully, it wasn’t the same reaction as when I had used aura myself, but it was still a shocking experience. I let out a sigh, feeling my thoughts grow increasingly tangled.

But that wasn’t the only thing that was troubling me.

“What about the damage outside the Empress’s Palace?”

“Nothing has been confirmed yet, but no traces of mana disruption have been found beyond the vicinity of the Empress’s Palace. You need not worry about that.”

“It’s too soon to draw conclusions. This is where His Majesty resides. Remain vigilant.”

“Understood.”

Though this incident had been limited to the Empress’s Palace, the fact that there had been a terror attack within the palace meant that no place was entirely safe.

‘Next time, Sionel could be the target.’

Having been the emperor’s guard for years, I couldn’t help but be sensitive to such matters. I pushed aside the thoughts of the strange heat clouding my mind and forced myself to focus on the current incident.

“Check every corner thoroughly, including not only where Her Majesty resides but even the paths she traverses. Don’t overlook anything, no matter how small.”

“Leave it to us.”

The calm response was followed by an involuntary nod from me. Having finished giving my instructions, I turned to head back to Sionel. But at that moment, a strange sense of déjà vu caught me by the nape.

Unable to suppress my bewilderment, I looked back. There stood Millior, captain of the palace guard, staring at me with wide, bright eyes.

Only then did I realize what had been odd.

“What—”

The man, with his neatly braided dark gray hair and scholarly demeanor, tilted his head slightly, his expression serene.

I stepped back, as if I had seen something I shouldn’t have.

“What is it? Why are you so… calm?”

I had only belatedly realized the peculiarity amidst the sudden chaos. Seeing Millior Rutain nodding calmly at my orders was anything but normal.

“Did you eat something strange?”

“Deputy Captain.”

Millior’s face remained unchanged, despite my skeptical reaction. Instead, he called out to me in a composed voice, and I was genuinely taken aback.

‘Millior being calm? Impossible!’

Millior Rutain was infamous for being a lunatic. Unlike Cryan, whose personality matched his mischievous appearance, Millior was the complete opposite—his gentle looks belied a wildly different temperament. Contrary to his frail appearance, this madman was always obsessed with combat, eager to pick a fight.

He couldn’t resist a duel with me.

“Hahaha! Today, we shall settle it once and for all!”

Even when I gave him orders as Deputy Captain, he would ignore them and charge at me for a spar. Now he was behaving himself? It was unbelievable.

It had been a while since I last saw him, as he had been guarding the outskirts of the palace on Sionel’s orders. Whatever had happened at that time, he seemed to be a completely different person.

As I wrestled with my thoughts, Millior’s gaze landed on my robe, scorched black by the explosion. His voice, impossibly calm, broke the silence.

“I believe that this incident was aimed at you, Deputy Captain.”

At his words, my lips tightened.

Everyone who knew of the incident likely thought the same, myself included.

“It must be.”

The attack had been far too blatant to mistake it for anything else. Why else would they go through all the trouble of attacking the long-abandoned Empress’s Palace using expensive magic tools, and right when I happened to be there?

Despite my sneer, Millior’s expression remained unchanged.

His unusual behavior prompted me to scrutinize him further.

“As you already know, I’ve never lost a fight.”

Millior suddenly spoke out of nowhere.

“The only ones who’ve beaten me are the Captain and you, Deputy Captain.”

With his innate desire for victory, Millior Rutain always challenged others to duels. If Shurain had tamed him into a person, I was his eternal rival. I looked at him, wondering why he was bringing this up, when he suddenly drew his beloved sword, silently.

The enormous sword, wholly mismatched with his seemingly frail build, cut through the air with ease before embedding itself in the ground.

“I’ll tear apart the bastards who did this, limb from limb.”

His gray eyes gleamed with murderous intent.

“The only one who can defeat you is me. So until then, Deputy Captain, don’t you dare lose to anyone.”

Millior’s voice quickened.

‘Is he crazy?’

I stared at him, bewildered.

Millior had always been openly defiant, but this was a first.

“To cut off the Deputy Captain’s head is—!”

-Thud!

Millior’s words were abruptly cut off by a dull thud, and he fell forward. Behind him stood his lieutenant, Arine, glaring at her superior with a look of utter disdain.

“If you’re worried about the Deputy Captain, just say you’re worried, Captain.”

Arine nudged Millior’s prone form with her foot—no, it was more like a kick.

“What do you think you’re doing, making a fool of yourself like this.”

Arine looked down at her direct superior with a gaze full of scorn.

I looked at Millior, now nursing the lump on the back of his head, and muttered incredulously, “That was supposed to be concern?”

It was my first time encountering someone who expressed their concern as a death threat.

“Exactly! Even though he’s our captain, this is just pathetic—”

“Concern? Me? Impossible. Absolutely not.”

Millior grimaced, as if such an idea were absurd, but it was hard to take him seriously while he was sprawled on the ground, rubbing his head.

“Lady Bodebachne, please understand. Even so, he’s the only one who still calls you ‘Deputy Captain’ despite your loss of rank. He’s loyal, in his own strange way!”

Laughing, Arine added that they, too, still considered me their Deputy Captain but were too afraid of the emperor to call me that out loud.

In reality, only the titles had changed; all the knights still followed me.

Not that I particularly cared, so I nodded.

“Oh, by the way, sir, I have something to—”

Arine, who had been about to say something, glanced behind me and suddenly stopped talking.

I wondered if she had seen something, but before I could turn around, Arine moved quickly. She grabbed Millior’s legs and tucked them under her arms.

Millior, whose face hit the ground once again when his legs were lifted, seemed of no concern to her. The real surprise was mine.

“Oh dear! I suddenly remembered something urgent! I’ll take my leave now!”

After a brief bow, Arine briskly walked away, dragging Millior behind her by the legs. It was quite a sight, seeing his face scraping against the ground.

I muttered under my breath, watching their retreating figures, “Why is it that the higher up you go in the Imperial Palace, the fewer sane people there are?”

I was so dumbfounded that I could hardly even care about the lingering heat anymore. I was the only normal one here.

Just then, I heard a voice, tinged with amusement.

“Does that include me as well?”

At the familiar voice, I whipped my head around, seeing Sionel approaching alone from the far end of the empty hallway.

“Sionel!”

I hurriedly ran towards him.

“Being alone at a time like this—!”

It seemed he had grown tired of waiting and had come out himself. It was touching, but wandering alone with an attack having just taken place was reckless.

As I watched Sionel smile softly, oblivious to my concerns, I called out in urgency. But there was something I had failed to notice until I drew closer to him.

“Danger—that… you’re in danger.”

“Ah, I’m alright.”

Sionel was not smiling at all. His lips were curved, but his blue eyes flashed with lethal intent as they looked at me.

It wasn’t until I got closer that I realized.

“Lindel.”

As soon as our eyes met, my feet stopped.

“You’re late.”

Sionel’s voice was unbearably gentle.

But no one would be fooled by that soft voice and smile.

There was a reason Arine had hurriedly dragged Millior away. She had spotted Sionel approaching from a distance and decided to run.

A sense of betrayal washed over me at how quickly she had chosen to flee.

“Are you hurt?”

“N-no.” I averted my gaze slightly as I answered.

“Look at me.”

Once again, a gentle voice called out to me. But I couldn’t bring myself to raise my head.

While I was busy trying to avoid his gaze, a roughened, calloused hand gently lifted my chin.

At that moment, I felt something warm and soft touch my parted lips.

“Mmm…!”

Sionel bit down on my lower lip, sucking on it.

The sensation of something warm and supple brushing against the spot it bit made me instinctively clench my lips shut.

Everything happened in a flash, my shoulders tensed and hunched up in response.

His hot palm touched the nape of my neck, as if trying to soothe my tense muscles. But I froze, as if I’d forgotten how to breathe.

With our lips still pressed together, Sionel comforted me softly.

When I barely parted my lips, a hot tongue slipped inside, tracing along my teeth and teasing the tender part of the roof of my mouth. The sensation was unbearably stimulating.

Everything moved so slowly, making the movements feel all the more vivid.

It felt like I was a gazelle caught by a predator.

Breathless, I clung to his neck, but his lips refused to part.

It was only after a long while, when Sionel had stolen enough of my breath, that he pulled away.

His eyes, meeting mine, crinkled lazily.

“Now you finally see me.”

He gently bit my lower lip again before letting go, satisfied.

I stood there, stunned like a country bumpkin who’d just been robbed in broad daylight.

It was the grand entrance of the craziest one of all among the mad people of the Imperial Palace.