BSPC 10

Chapter 10

The garden of the Second Prince’s Palace was enormous and beautifully maintained.

Unknown flowering trees grew in every direction, while fish swam leisurely in a small pond. Stepping stones were scattered across the ground at irregular intervals, adding to the garden’s charm.

However, Tamia’s face was filled with dissatisfaction as she looked at the pretty garden.

“Husband.”

“What’s the problem this time?”

“There are too many things getting in the way.”

Here, there, everywhere. It’s nothing but flower trees.

Tamia grumbled while pointing in every direction.

“I won’t be able to spar properly like this. And these stones on the ground are all bumpy, so they’re really inconvenient. The front yard of our house was wide and nice and clear.”

That’s not ‘nice and clear.’ It’s what you would call ‘empty.’

Rather than saying what he was thinking out loud, Leon decided to humor Tamia.

“Of course, there’s a separate training ground for sparring. It’s just a little far from the Second Prince’s Palace. If you want, I could clear out this entire garden and turn it into a training ground.”

“!”

The silent screams of the servants and gardeners standing nearby seemed to shake the entire garden.

“There’s a separate training ground? Oh, then there’s no need to clear out the garden. I thought this was the only place available.”

“Pheeeew.”

This time, sighs of relief could be heard from all around.

Just then—

“Her Imperial Majesty the Empress has arrived!”

With the servant’s loud announcement, the Empress appeared.

Malicia Valentis.

Although she was well over fifty years old, she was a beautiful woman who looked no older than her mid-thirties.

She had tied up her glossy pink hair neatly and placed a small tiara on her head.

“I heard that my son had brought home his bride, so I came to see her myself.”

Leon’s expression immediately soured the moment Malicia opened her mouth.

Her habit of speaking in roundabout ways, combined with that particular tone of voice, always grated on his nerves.

What she really meant was:

‘You haven’t even come to greet me, so what exactly are you doing here?’

Leon merely gave a half-hearted nod and kept his mouth shut.

Tamia tilted her head.

What’s going on? Did these two have a fight?

If so, then as the good-natured person she was, she should step forward and greet her first!

“It is an honor to meet the Moon of the Empire! I was planning to visit you first, but you came all the way here yourself. Your Imperial Majesty must be a very kind person.”

Tamia cheerfully bowed toward Malicia, then poked Leon in the side as though seeking his agreement.

But Leon still refused even to make eye contact with the Empress.

What the heck? They look like they have an even worse relationship than he did with His Majesty earlier!

Why is this family like this?

No matter how badly my family fights, we always make up within three days!

“Are you Tamia Arderin?”

Malicia’s question snapped Tamia out of her thoughts.

“No. I’m Tamia Valentis now. Because I’m married.”

“Ah, Valentis……”

Empress Malicia seemed to ponder the name for a moment.

Then, without warning, she slapped the cheek of a servant standing behind Tamia.

Smack!

“……!”

The Second Prince’s Palace servant who had suddenly been struck couldn’t even scream. He simply covered his cheek with both hands.

“The Princess Consort is terribly rude. How dare she answer back to me so directly?”

“Huh?”

“I cannot personally lay a hand on such an ill-mannered Princess Consort, so I punished one of her servants instead.”

The atmosphere instantly froze.

……She’s doing that again.

Whenever the Empress disliked something, she had a peculiar talent for making everyone around her uncomfortable until she eventually got what she wanted.

Just as Leon was reluctantly about to step forward in response to Malicia’s unreasonable behavior—

“Oh my, Your Imperial Majesty! You shouldn’t hit people like that.”

Tamia hurriedly grabbed Malicia’s wrist and began examining it from every angle.

“Does your wrist hurt? If you hit someone like that, it only makes a loud sound without doing much damage. You could hurt your wrist, too.”

“……?”

“If you want to hit someone properly, you need to learn how to rotate your entire body instead of relying on a wrist snap. Would you like me to teach you?”

Malicia was stunned by the completely unexpected response.

Tamia continued fiddling with Malicia’s hand.

“Oh dear, your skin must be quite delicate, too. Your palm is all red. Your Majesty, please don’t do things like this in the future. You’ll ruin those beautiful hands.”

“L-Let go of this……!”

Malicia hurriedly yanked her hand away and tried to respond, but Tamia continued speaking without stopping.

“Oh, wait. I suppose if you want to maintain discipline in the Imperial Palace, you have to endure doing unpleasant things like this, even if it brings tears to your eyes? If that’s the case, call me whenever you need to slap someone from now on. I’ll gladly do it for you, and I’ll make sure it’s a really satisfying hit.”

“W-What are you talking about……?!”

“Of course, I charge a separate travel fee, so please prepare enough money. How about ten der? Hehe.”

Hmm. I wonder if this amount of strength will satisfy her?

Tamia brought her palm down on a nearby rock.

Crack!

The solid stone was instantly dented in the shape of her hand.

“……!”

Seeing that, Malicia looked as though she might faint from shock.

She immediately turned around and fled as if running for her life.

“Please be sure to call me! I’ll be waiting!”

Tamia cheerfully shouted after the retreating Empress.

“Husband.”

Tamia plopped herself down on a bench in the garden and patted the empty space beside her.

“Come sit here.”

She already looked as though the Imperial garden belonged to her.

When Leon sat beside her, Tamia lowered her voice and asked him,

“Tell me honestly. Neither of His Majesties is actually your biological parent, right? They found you under a bridge, didn’t they?”

“What?”

“There’s no way you’d have such a terrible relationship with your parents otherwise.”

Tamia looked completely serious as she reasoned it out, making Leon let out a helpless laugh.

“You’re half right, Tamia. The Empress isn’t my biological mother.”

“Really? I knew it! You two seemed way too distant!”

“I’m more surprised that there are nobles who don’t know that.”

“Well, I spent a lot more time rolling around in the dirt with monsters than sitting at a desk……”

Tamia scratched the bridge of her nose awkwardly before asking again.

“Then is the Emperor your stepfather too?”

“No. The Emperor really is my biological father.”

Though he has treated me worse than a stepfather would.

Leon bitterly swallowed the rest of the thought.

“Since we’re talking about it anyway, I’ll tell you everything. My biological mother died when I was five.”

“Oh…… I see.”

“My father hated me, blaming me for her death.”

“Huh?! Why was that your husband’s fault? Did you kill her?”

“There’s no way I did.”

“Then why?”

“She died after being attacked by monsters while traveling with me.”

Tamia blinked twice, seemingly unable to understand.

“My father scolded me, asking why I hadn’t protected my mother.”

“What?! Is he crazy?! How was that your husband’s fault? You were only five!”

Tamia shot to her feet in outrage.

“You don’t need to get so angry.”

“Husband, should I go back and push His Majesty into that hole?”

Tamia was fuming so intensely that Leon couldn’t help but laugh.

“Thank you for the offer, at least. But you don’t have to do that.”

“Thank goodness.”

Tamia quickly sat back down.

“To be honest, I was a little worried you might actually tell me to go do it. If I did, my family would end up being branded a traitorous family because of me.”

If you were going to back out that quickly, why did you volunteer in the first place?

Leon laughed again at Tamia’s honest reaction.

“Husband.”

“Yes?”

“A five-year-old losing to a monster is completely normal. So don’t feel guilty.”

“Guilty?”

“Yes. Thinking things like, ‘If only I had been stronger, maybe I could have protected her,’ or ‘If I hadn’t insisted on going on that trip, maybe she would still be alive.’ All of that is pointless.”

Tamia looked at him seriously.

“You were just a tiny little kid.”

With astonishing simplicity, Tamia shattered the trauma Leon had carried for years.

“It’s wrong to make someone feel like something was their fault when it wasn’t. Don’t pay even the slightest bit of attention to that. It’s not worth caring about more than monster poop. Got it?”

Tamia gave his shoulder a hearty smack.

“Ugh—T-Tamia. I’d appreciate it if you treated me a little more gently from now on.”

“Ah! Sorry. My father always told me to be careful with my strength, too.”

Tamia widened her eyes and began gently patting the shoulder she had just struck.

Strangely enough, that rough, clumsy touch instantly cleansed the dark depths of Leon’s heart that had been slowly rotting away.

It wasn’t my fault……?

Had anyone ever told him that before?

Leon stared blankly at her.

Just then—

“Your Highness, so you were here.”

A servant from the Second Prince’s Palace came running toward Leon, breathing heavily.

In his hands was a long golden chain.

“I have brought the necessary item for consummating your marriage on your first night, according to Imperial tradition.”

“……H-Husband?”

Tamia’s hand, which had been gently patting Leon’s shoulder, froze in midair.

“W-We have to spend our first night together? No, more importantly……”

She swallowed hard and continued in a trembling voice.

“W-Why do we need a chain to spend our first night together?”