I’m in Trouble Because The Emperor Thinks My Time is Limited - Chapter 6

Looking down at my bloodstained clothes, I couldn’t help but sigh. If someone saw me like this, it would cause an uproar. Since this was the first time I had coughed up blood since being confined here, soft-hearted Luna would be particularly shocked if she found me in this state. Of course, anyone else seeing it would be a problem as well.

Feeling uncomfortable, I decided to clean the blood off my hands and chin. I stood up from my seat.

“Need help?” Laroche asked.

“No, I’m fine. I think it’s better if I just wash up in the bathroom. Can you tidy up the room while I’m gone?”

The room was a mess after Laroche had dramatically summoned the contract earlier. The curtains had come loose, and various decorations and flowers had been knocked over and scattered across the floor. The bed sheets and pillows were also disheveled after our earlier struggle.

Pointing to the mess, I gave her instructions. Laroche nodded awkwardly, a forced smile on her face.

“And make sure to neatly organize the contract back on the table.”

“Ugh! You’re really going to read all that?”

“Of course.”

When I responded cheerfully, Laroche made a face of disgust. It was an overwhelming amount of pages, but after being tricked by this con artist, I was determined to go through every single one.

Laroche, who had apparently assumed I was joking, looked genuinely alarmed. “How do you plan to read all that?”

“I’ll pull all-nighters if I have to. Now hand it over quietly. And if I find anything suspicious, expect it to be the day of your funeral.”

Laroche averted her gaze, looking guilty. Muttering under her breath, she reluctantly started summoning the stack of contracts again.

I paused just before entering the bathroom and asked, “So you can pull it out this neatly?”

She summoned the papers in an orderly manner this time, unlike the chaotic display earlier that had scattered them everywhere. It made me wonder why she had bothered with all that unnecessary drama in the first place.

“Well, doing it like that looks much cooler,” she said shyly.

I had plenty to say, but decided to hold my tongue. Laroche was definitely not normal.

As I turned back toward the bathroom, there was a knock at the door. We both froze, staring at the door in alarm.

“Lindel, it’s me. May I come in?”

“Captain?”

The voice belonged to Schrein.

Laroche and I exchanged panicked glances. His sudden visit was unexpected, and if he came inside, he would undoubtedly see Laroche. There was no way I could explain who she was or why she was here.

“Lindel?”

“One moment, please!”

Before I could tell Laroche to hide, she had already disappeared.

She was definitely quick when it came to making an exit. But just as I was about to relax, I spotted the thick pile of papers still sitting neatly on the bed.

‘Why did she leave that behind?!’

There was no way Schrein would overlook such a suspicious pile of papers.

Frantically, I grabbed the contract and looked around the room for somewhere to hide it. The knocking grew more urgent.

“Lindel?”

“Just a minute! Please wait!”

I crouched down and tried to shove the contract under the bed. As I was pushing it into place, Schrein’s voice came again.

“Is something wrong?”

“No, it’s just—ouch!”

In my rush to stand, worried that Schrein might come in, a sudden, excruciating pain shot through my foot.

‘Damn it! My—my toe!’

I had slammed my pinky toe against the corner of the bed. The pain was unbearable, and I couldn’t stop a groan from escaping as I toppled forward. Being cut by a blade or kicked might hurt, but nothing compared to the fresh agony of stubbing a toe.

While I silently clutched my foot, trembling in pain, Schrein opened the door and came in.

“Lindel! What’s—”

He burst into the room with such force that the door banged loudly against the wall. But then he fell silent, seemingly unable to continue his sentence.

I looked up awkwardly from the floor, still holding my foot.

“Oh, you’re here?”

I must have looked utterly ridiculous.

If I had stunned Schrein into silence, I could only imagine how pitiful I appeared.

But when I looked at his face, his expression wasn’t what I had expected.

“…What’s wrong?” I asked.

Schrein wasn’t staring at me in pity; he looked utterly horrified.

Had he never seen someone stub their toe before?

Confused, I gave him a strange look, and then I heard him speak, his voice trembling.

“Lindel?”

“Yes?”

And that was the extent of my response, sounding completely foolish.

***

If there was one thing Schrein Empester regretted most in his life, it was bringing Lindel to the imperial palace.

He had never stopped feeling guilty for introducing Lindel to the current emperor.

And now, Schrein felt that regret piercing his soul.

“Lindel…”

His voice shook uncontrollably. When he opened the door and saw her, Lindel was leaning against the bed, struggling to catch her breath.

Her face and shirt were stained with dark, dried blood, and cold sweat covered her pale forehead. But what pained Schrein the most were her trembling eyes as they looked at him.

Her eyes were filled with fear—fear of having her condition exposed.

That fear. The idea that Lindel was afraid of him shocked Schrein deeply.

“You’re here?”

Lindel spoke carefully, a faint smile on her pale face, but there was no joy in her expression.

Just then, a sharp intake of breath came from behind him. The knight who had opened the door had also seen the scene and was clearly just as shocked.

The knight shouted that he would go fetch a priest, but before Schrein could react, he saw Lindel’s face fill with despair.

“Don’t! There’s no need to call anyone.”

“But the blood—”

“A priest won’t change anything. You know that as well, don’t you, Captain?”

Her awkward smile was an attempt to hide her pain as she pleaded with them not to call a priest. The desperation on her face stopped both of them from making the call.

‘Nothing will change.’

Schrein couldn’t imagine how much hope must have been crushed for Lindel to say those words.

Countless priests had examined her illness, but none had been able to find the cause. The process had clearly taken a toll on her. She was so wary of showing her condition to a priest that Schrein couldn’t fathom what she must have gone through.

What had reduced her to this state?

Schrein had to bite the inside of his cheek to stop himself from showing any emotion.

While the knight excused himself to fetch a maid instead, Schrein and Lindel were left alone in the room.

Schrein watched her silently, unable to speak.

“Lindel.”

He wanted to ask her how badly she was hurting. How much pain she was in and where it hurt.

But Schrein couldn’t bring himself to ask.

He had noticed the way her lips had trembled the moment he opened his mouth.

“Never mind. It’s nothing. You should lie down until the maid arrives.”

As he approached to help her lie down, Lindel wobbled slightly.

Her leg seemed to be bothering her, and when Schrein looked at her, she turned her head away and made an excuse.

“I hit my toe on the corner of the bed.”

“I see.”

It was a pitiful excuse. The girl who had always been so bold couldn’t even look him in the eye.

Despite insisting that she was fine, Lindel refused to lie down. Instead, she sat propped up against the headboard, facing Schrein.

This allowed Schrein to fully take in her condition.

Her face was even paler than it had been just a week ago, and the amount of blood on her clothes was alarming.

“Has this been happening often?”

Schrein’s voice dropped in spite of himself. He wanted to scream and demand answers.

Why was this child—this poor girl—suffering so much?

“This is the first time. It’s not normally like this.”

She tried to hide the bloodstains on her sleeve behind her back as she gave him a forced smile, as if nothing was wrong.

“And it’s really not as bad as it looks. I’ve told you before—I’m fine.” Lindel smiled bravely.

Even now, she was more worried about him than her own pain. Schrein had to bite back the tears that were threatening to escape.

As he turned away to compose himself, he noticed the disarray in the room.

Lindel was too weak to have caused this mess herself.

Schrein had a pretty good idea of who was responsible, and his face hardened.

‘The emperor…!’

Before coming to Lindel’s room, he had heard that the emperor had visited earlier.

Sionel had always treated Lindel harshly, but Schrein never imagined it could have gone this far.

The thought that the emperor might have been mistreating her behind his back filled Schrein with a blinding rage.

Not only had Sionel confined this sick child, but he had also come here and wreaked havoc.

Schrein didn’t want to believe it, but the evidence before his eyes was too clear to ignore.

As Schrein’s gaze swept over the disordered room, Lindel hurriedly began to make excuses.

“I’ve just been here for so long, I got restless. The room’s gotten a bit messy, hasn’t it?”

Even now, Lindel was trying to protect the emperor.

Schrein couldn’t stop his expression from twisting in anger. A relationship where one side had to be so helplessly weak was not love.

“You don’t have to hide the truth from me. You can tell me what’s really going on.”

His voice was firm, and Lindel finally lowered her head.

Watching her made Schrein want to bite through his lip in frustration. If he didn’t, he feared he would explode with anger.

He was furious at the emperor for doing this to her, and at himself for failing to protect her.

“Lindel, do you still love His Majesty?”

“Of course. How could I not love him?”

Despite being treated this way, Lindel smiled. That smile cut deep into Schrein’s heart.

“But it’s not just one-sided anymore.”

Schrein’s eyes widened in shock at her next words.

“His Majesty told me he loves me too.”

A faint blush colored Lindel’s pale cheeks.

Schrein was too stunned to respond, but Lindel smiled knowingly.

“Just earlier, His Majesty said he loves me. Isn’t that incredible? His Majesty loves me.”

Lindel’s voice brimmed with pride, but her face didn’t seem entirely happy.

“I’m so happy. He loves me.”

Her eyes were fixed on the floor, her expression somber.

Though her lips formed a smile, they trembled slightly, as if she were trying to force it.

“Why now, of all times?”

Her quiet voice slipped out like a sigh. It sounded like a question to herself, a glimpse of her true feelings.

Schrein realized at that moment that Lindel couldn’t be happy.

She was convinced she didn’t have much time left.

Seeing that desolate look on her face, Schrein felt as if the ground had crumbled beneath him.

His precious child was truly dying.

***

Despite the tension that had filled the room during Schrein’s sudden visit, I couldn’t help but laugh when I thought about Sionel.

After all, I had just learned the truth about his feelings.

Even though the situation wasn’t ideal, the important thing was that my feelings had finally reached him. I couldn’t help but be happy.

“His Majesty told me he loves me too.”

I boasted to Schrein that Sionel loved me.

But as I spoke, I remembered that Schrein had never been in a relationship himself.

‘I shouldn’t rub it in too much in front of him, should I?’

I was a considerate person, after all. I made sure to control my expression, speaking in a calm and modest tone so that it wouldn’t seem like I was bragging.

But I couldn’t completely suppress the giddiness bubbling up inside me. My lips twitched, threatening to break into a smile.

Then, thoughts of Laroche and her ridiculous 1,700-page contract resurfaced in my mind.

“Why now, of all times?”

Thinking about it, this really wasn’t the time to be bragging.

The thought of Laroche and that infuriatingly long contract made the back of my neck stiffen. My mood plummeted.

‘What was I thinking, getting all proud of myself?’

I couldn’t believe I had let myself be swept up in happiness for even a moment.

I sighed heavily, looking up, only to meet Schrein’s eyes, which had been fixed on me the entire time.

“……!”

Schrein’s face was twisted in an expression of deep sorrow.

‘Is he upset because I was bragging?!’

It seemed like my boasting had upset him.

He must have found me incredibly annoying because he was now glaring at me with undisguised irritation.

I couldn’t believe Schrein was so petty as to glare at me just because I bragged a little.