I Became the Master of the Empress - Chapter 288



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Time passed, and the second son was born.

His name is Roden.

It is named after Rohan.

I named him Roden as a testament to my will to never forget my first son, Rohan.

“Mom? Is this my little brother?”

Three-year-old Octavia’s eyes sparkled as she poked Roden’s cheek with her finger.

“Bia, Roden’s skin is delicate, so you shouldn’t poke him like that.”

“Aww, but his cheeks are so soft!”

Octavia made a face as if she had just had candy taken away from her.

She said with a look of distress, “I just want to touch him because he’s so soft.”

“Hehe, but he’s still so little, right? You have to protect your little brother.”

Octavia, who was so eager to touch him, shook her head and said, “Yes! I’m Roden’s big sister, so I will protect him. Hehe.”

Lying next to Roden, Octavia hugged him tightly, but perhaps Roden found it a bit suffocating?

“Waaah!”

He suddenly started to cry.

“Shh, shh, it’s okay, Mommy’s here. Who made our Roden cry? Hmm? Who could have made our pretty Roden cry?”

– Pat, pat.

Roden has black hair, just like me.

But overall, he seems to resemble Valoran a bit more than me.

Is blood really thicker than water?

He’s a little different from Octavia, who looks just like me.

“Uuuh… Hehe.”

As I held him and patted him, Roden quickly broke into a big smile.

“Does our Roden like being in Mommy’s arms? I like Roden so much too.”

“Mom?! I’m I’m?! Am I the best?”

As I held Roden and gently patted him, Octavia’s eyes sparkled with excitement.

“Hehe, this mom loves both Via and Roden.”

And… Rohan too…

Every time I see these children, I think of Rohan, who passed away too soon.

If that child had grown up, he would be taller than Octavia now, right?

There’s just a one-year difference between them.

He would have turned four by now…

***

“Waaah! Waaah!”

I woke up to the sound of Roden crying in the early morning.

Roden cries every two hours.

Even though I’m sleepy and my eyes are blurry, I force myself to open them and get out of bed.

“Roden, are you already awake?”

Taking care of a baby is mentally and physically exhausting.

But at the same time…

“Hehe, so cute.”

Looking at this small, young baby fills me with a desire to protect him.

I quietly check Roden’s diaper, but there’s nothing wrong.

“Yawn! Our Roden must be hungry, huh? Alright… let’s eat.”

“Waaah!”

I gently unbutton my pajamas and bring my breast to Roden’s mouth.

– Pat… Pat…

“Mom… why does Roden keep crying? Huh…”

Octavia, with a pouty face.

Since she’s been a light sleeper since she was a baby, she often wakes up to Roden’s cries.

I wish Octavia could have her own space to sleep comfortably, but I’m afraid that Valoran might harm her, so we’re living together.

“Our Roden is crying because he’s hungry. If you’re sleepy, you can go back to sleep first.”

“Ugh… I don’t want to, haah! I want to sleep with mom.”

With half-closed eyes, Octavia climbs down from the bed, tightly hugging my legs and rubbing her cheek against them.

—

Hehe, so cute.

Octavia, with her hair in two braids, is so adorable that I gently stroke her head with one hand.

As time passes, and as Roden grows stronger… I feel a sense of dread.

Rohan was killed by Valoran on his first birthday. As Roden’s birthday approaches, I can’t help but fear that nightmare will replay itself.

If I were to bear another child… that would be…

What if they try to kill Roden again this time?

I cannot stop the powerful Valoran with my own strength.

What should I do? How can I protect my child?

I cannot just stand by and watch that wicked demon try to take my son from me.

So… I summoned Alfred to the Grand Palace.

“Your Grace, did you call for me?”

“Yes.”

After giving birth to Octavia and Roden, I began to meet with Alfred frequently, out of fear of Valoran.

I hope that if anything were to happen to them, Alfred would step in.

Though as a diplomat, he has no grounds to intervene with the Ryan family, I still want to warn him.

That I have my homeland behind me…

“By the way, how is Prince Roden doing?”

“Roden is growing well. He’s thriving more and more each day.”

The reason I meet with Alfred is simple.

It’s for Roden’s safety.

“I have a request for you.”

Alfred nodded readily.

“Please, speak freely. I will convey it.”

“I want to ensure the safety of my son, Roden.”

His expression hardened.

“Surely, you don’t think the Grand Duke would kill his own son again? I heard you had a hard time explaining that incident to the Imperial Council last time. To do something like that again would be madness, wouldn’t it?”

I shook my head and replied.

“Whatever the case, he’s already someone who has killed my son once; I cannot trust him. So I hope you will take action.”

Alfred nodded.

“Yes, I will relay this to my homeland and get a prompt response.”

—

—

“And… this…”

I was given a letter to send to my dad.

“What’s this? What is it?”

“It’s a letter to my family. A personal letter.”

Since coming to the Grand Duchy, I had never met my family even once.

The family I longed to see every day.

Here, we only exchanged letters frequently…

But it never fully filled the void of my longing.

My family also sent me letters often, wondering if I missed them.

In that desolate Grand Duchy, those letters were a small comfort.

Someday, I want to show my children to my brothers.

***

A few days after meeting Alfred…

-Crack!

My door shattered as Valoran barged in.

“You filthy b*tch! How dare you play tricks on me?!”

Valoran glared at me with a fierce look.

He roughly slapped my cheek with his hand.

-Slap!

“Ahhh!”

“How dare you conspire with the United Kingdom?!”

Conspire? Is this what they call conspiracy?!

I stood up from the floor, glaring at him defiantly.

“Is asking to save my son a conspiracy?!”

“U-Umma?!, Appa? Ugh… Waaah, don’t fight!”

“You wretched b*tch!”

-Slam!

“Gah!”

“Alright! Today, I’ll show that beach village girl a lesson!”

-Thud!

—

“Ah, oh no!, Ahh!”

Tears stream down my face due to merciless kicks.

Too painful…

The man who tramples on my back and legs with his stiff boots.

Is it really my husband who is like that?

He presses his foot down heavily on my chest.

“Ugh!”

I… can’t breathe.

“Mom?! Don’t do that to Mom! Dad! Dad! Don’t do that! Stop it!”

-Clang!

Octavia, who was hit by the man’s hand, falls to the ground and starts crying.

“Waaah!”

“What kind of person is this! Don’t you know where you’re going and block the way in front of others?!”

I have to stop him! I can’t lose Octavia!

My whole body feels like it’s going to tear apart from the pain, but I stretch out my arms and hug Octavia tightly, saying:

“Stop it! The child didn’t do anything wrong, so if you’re going to hit, hit me instead! Why are you doing this to the child?”

But the man’s eyes are as cold as ice and glare at Octavia.

“It’s because Octavia didn’t receive proper family education, so she’s being punished.”

His piercing gaze.

No, no, no. It’s already too late.

I think of the gaze I saw at Rohan’s birthday party and feel a chill run down my spine. I hug Octavia tightly to my body.

“I’m sorry, I’m really sorry! I did something wrong! Please… please… I’m still young, and I’ll teach you. So, please just look at me once more. Okay? I’m five years old now! Still…”

The man raises a bitter smile and looks at me.

“Fine. Remember that gaze, that heart. And if you make a mistake again… then, both Rohan and Octavia will be sent to the side of failure.”

He kneels down on one knee, spreads his arms wide, and looks at Octavia, saying:

“Hold on.”

“Ah, no! Dad is scary! Ah, no.”

I see Octavia, who is trying to avoid the man’s kick, and try to calm her down with a soothing tone.

“Octavia? Come, come, Dad’s arms will hug you. Yes? Please… yes?”

I try to comfort Octavia, who might be hurt by my words…

– Hiccup.

The small child looked at me, her face turning pale.

“Ugh, I want to be held… Hic… I’ll be held, so please don’t hit Mommy.”

Saying this, Octavia nestled into Valoran’s arms.

As I watched the child tremble weakly in his embrace, tears wouldn’t stop flowing.

– Pat, pat.

“Now, now, if you listen well to your father, no one will get hurt. Do you understand?”

Octavia nodded her head slightly while nestled in his arms.

How scared and shaken must that child be right now?

A moment later, when I let Octavia go, she dashed behind me in a hurry.

“This will be the only time I fall.”

As soon as Valoran left, I urgently summoned Alfred to the Grand Duke’s palace.

“What happened? I want to know why that beast caused such a ruckus.”

If things had gone wrong, even Octavia could have died.

The thought that I almost lost both of them while trying to save Roden still sends chills down my spine.

And surely, Alfred must know the reason behind that beast’s behavior.

“This time, the Grand Duchess requested that, in exchange for providing more support to the Grand Duchy, she be allowed to come to the United Kingdom for a vacation due to her illness.”

So? Could it be that I might be able to return?

Will I finally go back to my beloved hometown?

Feeling an overwhelming joy, I urged Alfred, and he smiled brightly.

“I initially refused, but since she strongly requested it, even mentioning the recent death of Prince Rohan, the Grand Duchy will surely have to show some sincerity.”

“Then… what about me?”

He nodded his head.

“It seems the Grand Duchess will be able to return to the United Kingdom. No… It is the command of His Majesty that she must return.”

Finally… am I leaving this hellish place?

Finally?!

– Sniff.

My vision blurred before me.

“Hic…”

“Your Highness, the Grand Duchess… you have endured so much during this time. And…”

Alfred continues speaking.

“This time, Prince Leo has decided to visit here for Lord Roden’s first birthday.”

“Really?”

My brother is coming?

Prince Leo is the heir to the United Kingdom.

But this is the land of the Empire.

A prince from a rival kingdom shouldn’t come here so easily, right?

He smiled wryly as he spoke.

“He says he’s coming as a plenipotentiary ambassador to expedite the negotiations.”

“B-but he’s a prince, and this is the Empire’s land. What if something happens…?”

As I asked, my face filled with confusion, he gave a faint smile.

“I tried to dissuade him along with His Majesty the King, but the Crown Prince’s determination is too strong. He insisted on rescuing his little sister, so…”

A sense of familial love I hadn’t felt in a long time.

It warms a corner of my heart.

Brother… thank you.