Chapter 23: Tell Me Who’s in Danger Chapter 23
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"Ah, that's quite an amusing joke, Your Majesty."
Ahaha. Sena forced a smile, but Astria's expression was serious.
"I'm not joking."
Sena started to feel a sense of crisis. As he stepped back, Astria moved closer.
"Well, I am a man, after all. Isn't it a bit inappropriate for me to share a bed with Your Majesty?"
"What's wrong with a man sharing a bed with a woman?"
'This conversation is getting weirder and weirder…!'
The world seemed to spin around him. It was incredibly disorienting.
"I-I'm busy, so…"
"I allow work to be done in my bedroom."
"But that's not appropriate! Please let go of me."
Sena struggled to break free from Astria.
'Why can't I move…!'
But she didn't budge.
Though her legs were fixed, Astria's condition seemed more like that of a comprehensive hospital patient.
Astria spoke with great interest.
"Why not? Give me a reason."
"I-it's dangerous."
"Dangerous?"
Astria tilted her head, wondering if she had just heard wrong.
Soon, a smile spread across her lips. She pulled Sena closer.
Sena was abruptly pulled into Astria's embrace.
Her breath, even the down on her skin, was too close.
Astria looked down. Her slightly cloudy eyes were overflowing with some kind of desire.
"Indeed, who's in danger, tell me."
'What's happening here?'
Sena felt as if time had stopped.
So, he followed Astria all day today and walked her to her room.
In the afternoon, he fell asleep reading a book… How did it all lead to this?
Sena was confused. So confused that he couldn't think straight.
"You seem to have forgotten momentarily, but what's before you is a tyrant."
Indeed. Astria was a tyrant. No historical account could explain her logic.
Without any reason at all…
"A tyrant takes, seizes, conquers. The ones next to the tyrant are the ones in danger. So, the one in danger now is my personal physician, you."
She did what she wanted.
Astria released Sena from her embrace. Facing him directly, she stood him to her right.
Then, slowly, she extended her right arm and gently pushed Sena.
"Eh."
Losing his balance, Sena collapsed onto the bed. Before he could rise, Astria climbed on top of him.
She pressed his resisting hands firmly into the sheets.
Sena's face turned red up to his neck.
"You pale one, showing this color too."
Laughing, Astria leaned over him. Looking down at Sena, she undid a button or two of her blouse.
"Your Majesty? What are you doing…"
"Do you still not understand? Trying to make a baby. I'm at the age where I need at least one heir."
Watching Astria, who seemed to have no intention of turning back, Sena swallowed.
'Is this my first time? So suddenly like this?'
The first experience Sena had imagined was supposed to be more thrilling, in a special setting.
But this didn't seem so bad either.
Limited time.
If it's not now, there won't be a chance to form a relationship until his death.
After all, wouldn't it be a pity if he died without ever being able to do it?
Sena, who had mentally prepared himself, opened his eyes at the sound of the door opening.
"The bath is ready… I apologize. I'll come back later."
It was Betty, Astria's personal maid. Betty, a professional maid, was not at all surprised by her mistress's secretive activities.
As the door closed, the awkward tension that had been barely suppressed between them surged back.
Astria glanced back after a moment, her expression now cooled.
"Trying to have a little fun, and yet my maid has no sense, hmm?"
"Uh, uh, ugh."
"…Is that Elvish? There's no human who understands it. Oh well."
Astria caressed Sena's cheek and whispered in his ear.
"The night is long."
**
Dressed in pajamas, Astria confidently approached Sena sitting on the bed without a trace of hesitation.
"Go wash up."
"Yes, yes…"
Sena couldn't properly meet Astria's gaze. Astria smirked at him.
"A face I like."
"I'll…, I'll go wash up."
"I can't wait too long. I sleep a lot."
That was a known fact.
Sena stiffly left the Empress's bedroom.
Just before grabbing the door, Astria spoke.
"If you try to escape, I'll kill Chris."
"…Why does poor Chris have to die?"
"Because you seem like you wouldn't mind losing your own life. Your attitude tells me that much."
"…I won't try to escape. For now."
Astria thought it was cute as she watched Sena walk out with Betty with her head down.
-'For now.'
He said something similar last time in his sleep.
He thought about it then, too…
"Do you really believe you can escape from me? How amusing."
Astria smiled and turned her body. She climbed into bed and lay down.
Not in the exact center like usual, but at the far left.
Sena's body didn't need a bath.
Did God consider there might be obsessive compulsions when making this body? Even after days without washing, he only smelled pleasantly.
Yet Sena took a bath. It was a complete waste, but bathing held meaning beyond its practical sense of cleanliness.
"You really can take a bath without a bath attendant."
Sena laughed awkwardly, holding onto his dripping hair.
"Could you bring me some clothes? And then, please leave."
"I have to check everything that enters Her Majesty's jade body."
"Don't worry, it functions well enough!"
"Excuse me."
Sena safely dressed. The clothes were made of soft fabric that gently embraced his skin. They were loose-fitting and very comfortable.
"You look good. But, perhaps it's best to avoid white. It'll soon disappear."
Betty's short commentary left Sena unsure if it was praise or gossip, but either way, he followed Betty nervously.
The crisp night air filled his lungs.
The moon was properly in the sky. The royal guards patrolling a few courtyards were romantic.
However.
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Sena blinked. Had he seen that wrong?
The knights' lifespans were all short. Not just one or two, but many.
Sena glanced around anxiously.
"Is there something bothering you?"
"It's nothing."
"…Even soaking wet, your hair stands up."
"Ah, really?"
Sena raised his eyebrows. He couldn't see the top of his head, but he ran his hand near it.
"Indeed."
Sena had a tendency for unruly hair.
It was an unforgivable trait for someone with obsessive-compulsive tendencies like Sena.
Because of this, despite being bothered by it, he let his hair grow long, except for his hair standing up, which seemed inevitable.
'Anyway, what's going to happen?'
Sena's eyes lowered.
There was no immediate rush to check his pulse.
If everything ended like this, all the remaining time would still be insufficient for treatment.
But a fundamental curiosity arose. Could it be an epidemic? No, if so, Betty wouldn't have been unharmed. Betty's time had been normal.
So the possibilities narrowed down to one. People don't necessarily die from illness alone.
Accidents. It seemed something big was about to happen in the palace soon.
'Sorry.'
He couldn't get involved that far. Sena was trying to run away, even abandoning Astria.
For his own sake in his final hours.
Though Sena muttered a few times—he soon focused his attention back to Astria.
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Her remaining time. Just thinking about it soured his mood.
'Now there's only one thing I can do.'
At the very least, nominate a good successor.
Someone trustworthy, skilled, and capable of exerting influence even if Sena himself were to leave this world.
There was only one person. A classmate from the academy, Priestess Seria. If it were her, she'd even cooperate with Cruyff if necessary.
Normally, meeting an old friend wouldn't be daunting—but given today's events, news of him becoming the physician had likely spread throughout the capital.
'Tomorrow, spend time meeting Seria.'
As Sena continued his thoughts, he suddenly found himself in Astria's bedroom.
'Now's not the time for this! What should I do? Should I escape now?'
Betty politely bowed and said.
"It's Her Majesty's first time, please be gentle."
'F-first time?'
That comment only added to his confusion.
After all, she was the Empress. Wasn't it typical for an Empress to be licentious?
It was the medieval era, so bearing children was considered an important state affair.
…It surprised him a bit to hear it was her first time.
He was relieved she likely wouldn't notice his clumsiness.
"Haaah."
Sena took a deep breath and opened the bedroom door.
As his vision cleared, he saw Astria lying on the bed.
Sena couldn't muster the courage to look at her and gazed at the floor instead.
Strangely, no sound reached him, prompting Sena to look up.
"…Your Majesty?"
Astria was peacefully sleeping.
'Is she sleeping?'
Sena's body slumped. What am I worrying about?
'Well, that's a relief.'
But soon, he was grateful she'd fallen asleep.
If he'd experienced his first time tonight, Sena would have been plagued by regret.
That regret would torment him, causing him to lose sight of his original goal.
Ultimately, he would have become trapped, unable to leave.
Sena watched her sleep. Her tousled blonde hair was near her mouth, so he carefully brushed it aside.
While awake, she could be forceful, but asleep, she was just an ordinary girl.
Sena gazed at Astria for a long while, as if etching her image into his corneas.
The passage of time seemed unknowable, making it amusing.
After a while, Sena pulled the string beside him and turned off the light.
'…It's too late to go back now. It'd be awkward to wake up and move.'
As she'd said, let's sleep here tonight.
Above all, if she'd awoken and found her expected companion absent in the morning, Astria would likely feel lonely.
Lying next to her, Sena turned his body to the right.
His eyes adjusted slightly, revealing a glimpse of Astria's face. Sena whispered softly.
"Goodnight, Your Majesty."
And so, Sena's 67th remaining night passed.
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