The Emperor and the Knightess
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Chapter 301

As soon as he heard that the meeting between Lucius the First and Poliana was over, Sir Ainno visited the emperor. When he entered the room and saw Lucius the First, the emperor, unfortunately, didn’t look very happy. The room was dark and Lucius the First was clearly upset. Sir Ainno couldn’t understand why.

‘They had a child together, so why does he look like that? Could it be… Did she actually refuse his proposal, seriously?’

All the emperor had to do was forgive Poliana for hiding the baby and propose to her. What could have gone wrong in this home run scenario? What the heck happened?

Lucius the First wasn’t crying. He didn’t look angry and he wasn’t smiling either. The emperor just looked… guilty. He looked like he was regretful, making Sir Ainno frown in frustration and anger.

No one could argue that Sir Ainno was loyal to the emperor, and as someone who loved Lucius the First, Sir Ainno was furious that his emperor was making such an expression. An emperor should never be apologetic, even if it was for the woman he loved. The emperor should never forget that he was the master of his kingdom.

Sir Ainno, clearly furious, turned around. His job was to make sure his emperor never had to make such an expression, and he was ready to take care of the situation. He would go and make Poliana make the right decision.

“Don’t go.”

Lucius the First stopped him before he could leave the door.

“Your highness.”

“It’s my fault.”

“Your highness did not do anything wrong. You are the emperor. You are the ruler of this kingdom and therefore by definition, you can do no wrong. It is Marquess Winter’s fault for upsetting you and she must be punished.”

“No, Inno. It’s my fault. I betrayed a loyal knight for a woman I love.”

Lucius the First wanted Poliana’s happiness. He wanted what was best for her, but when the emperor found out about the baby, he couldn’t control his own excitement at the fact that they now had no choice but to get married. Lucius the First was so happy that he forgot about Poliana’s own happiness.

The emperor knew he made a mistake. Confessing his love for her was the absolute wrong thing to do. If he told her that because of their child, they now had to get married for the good of the kingdom, Poliana would’ve accepted his proposal. She would’ve seen it as her responsibility and felt ok about it.

Lucius the First should’ve been more patient. He was too excited, and he forgot the reality. He was dreaming of his happy future when he wasn’t thinking about how Poliana would feel.

It was all his fault. Whether they had a child together or not, he should’ve always considered Poliana’s happiness first. His resolve shouldn’t have changed like this. Just having a child didn’t change Poliana in any way. Becoming a mother didn’t change Poliana into a different person, the emperor’s long wait and patience now were for nothing.

When Lucius the First looked devastated, Sir Ainno said firmly, “She dared to run away when she was carrying your highness’s child. She tried to hide the existence of a royal member. She also tried to forge the papers to fool you, and most of all, even though your highness forgave her for everything, she still hurt you badly by refusing your proposal. All these crimes she committed… They are unforgivable.”

“Inno, you know better. You know that when you are hunting, the easiest prey is the mothers with young, but it is also them that you should never hunt. I knew Poliana was vulnerable and I used this situation against her.”

Lucius the First began to tear up as he continued, “She became pregnant with no family of her own to help and protect her. Can you imagine how shocked she must’ve been? It is no wonder that she ran away. The Poliana you and I know is a soldier. All she knows is how to kill, not how to bear and raise a child, and I, the child’s father, was insensitive enough to confess my love for her and tried to trap her into my arms… I can understand why she has difficulty trusting me.”

“This is exactly what I have been warning both of you about. I told her not to drink with a man alone. If she listened to my advice, none of this would’ve happened. Her inappropriate action has created this problem.”

What Sir Ainno was angry about wasn’t the fact that the two of them got drunk. He was furious about how the emperor’s knight, who was supposed to exist to protect Lucius the First, got so drunk that she could not even remember what happened that night. In Sir Ainno’s mind, Poliana did not do her most important duty as the knight of Acreia.

“But Inno, you used to drink with Pol all the time too. It is me who made a mistake; it is I who betrayed her.”

The emperor was being pitiful again. Sir Ainno, clearly annoyed, asked with a sigh, “So what are you going to do now?”

“Whatever I do, I know you will support me, Inno.”

Sir Ainno quickly kneeled in front of the emperor and replied, “I will always be your Inno, your highness.”

“I can see that you are happy. Although I feel jealous, I am also happy for you.”

Inno quickly stood up and thought, ‘He is changing the subject again.’

Only

Lucius the First looked at him with a lonely smile, which made him look even more beautiful. Not too long ago, Sir Ainno was able to win Cekel’s heart and marry her immediately after the royal death period ended. From Cekel Ingreter, Cekel became Cekel Seki.

Duke Seki, Sir Ainno’s father, wanted his oldest son to inherit the title now that he was married, but Sir Ainno refused. He gave an excuse of him being still inexperienced, but in truth, he just didn’t want the responsibility just yet.

Oddly enough, Sir Ainno felt a little guilty about how things were going. His own love life was a success while it seemed that the emperor’s quest for love was going very wrong.

‘Could it be because I took away Sir Pol’s love luck? It can’t be… Can it?’

If this was really the case, Sir Ainno believed that things will work out for the emperor and the marquess slowly. If he remembered correctly, Poliana gave him the two years of her love luck. That 2 years was almost over now.

Sir Ainno, who had a notoriously hot temper, wanted to go and beat some sense into the marquess, but he stopped himself. He decided that all he had to do was wait; time would fix everything.

Just as Poliana trusted Lucius the First, Sir Ainno trusted the emperor as well. He truly believed that Lucius the First will do something, anything to make this situation right. After all, this involved the woman who should be his wife and the empress of this kingdom, as well as their firstborn son.