The Cold-Hearted Grand Duke Obsesses Over Me After My Death - Chapter 144

Chapter 144. Revenge (4)

“Gasp, Louid!”

Cold sweat drenched Emilia’s forehead as she woke at dawn. She felt uneasy. She kept seeing Louid bleeding. It felt as if he were calling her. Unable to sit still, she went down to the first floor.

She had no sense of how much time had passed. She sat blankly at the kitchen table, clutching a teacup she hadn’t been able to drink, when she heard footsteps outside. It was Damian, who had gone to the imperial capital.

Emilia jumped to her feet. “Welcome back. It wasn’t too hard, was it?”

“I’m fine. Nothing happened, right?” Damian answered as he entered the kitchen. He took off the robe he was wearing and hung it over the back of a chair. It was quite chilly outside.

“Ah… are you okay? And at the imperial palace….”

She hesitated over whether to ask about Louid, preparing tea and snacks for Damian.

“His Majesty has gone to war.”

“What? What war?”

Her hands trembled as she held the tray. Damian took it from her and seated her in a chair.

Quick-witted, he already knew she was worried about Louid. That was why he had avoided talking about the Emperor, but now it seemed he had to tell her.

“He’s at war with the Kingdom of Billiot.”

At his words, Emilia’s eyes shook without focus. Her lips opened and closed repeatedly, as if trying to say something. If it was the Kingdom of Billiot, then it meant he was fighting Prince Ian….

Why is there a war now?

Is it because of me?

All kinds of thoughts ran through her mind, but what came out of her mouth was something else.

“Then who’s handling state affairs?”

“Duke Dalton is overseeing them. I think I’ll have to go help from time to time as well.”

In truth, though he didn’t tell Emilia, he had applied to enlist as a soldier to participate in the war. But Asher had strongly opposed it.

“You need to help me. His Majesty has never lost a battle, so don’t worry.”

“Yes, understood.”

“There isn’t much farm work yet, so don’t worry about this place and go help the duke,” Emilia said.

Grapevines needed pruning in winter, so they were currently busy with that. But since Evan and she alone were enough, she thought it would be better to send Damian to help Asher.

“Alright, I will. I’ve hired more workers, so don’t worry. They’ll be arriving soon,” Damian said gently. He had already asked Evan to find people who were discreet and didn’t show excessive interest in others.

“Really? That’s a relief.”

It was fine for now, but she had been worried because the busiest season of the farm would overlap with her childbirth. Hearing that more hands had been secured eased her mind.

‘Louid isn’t injured, right?’

Even after finishing the conversation, she couldn’t settle her worries about Louid. She didn’t voice it, but it showed clearly on her face. Damian looked at his sister, as transparent as crystal, with a warm gaze and tried to comfort her.

“It’ll be fine. They say His Majesty has never lost a war.”

“Next time you go up, could you find out how things are at the battlefield?”

Even with his reassurance, Emilia’s anxiety did not fade.

“Alright.”

***

“Get up. Louid.”

Emilia’s voice kept echoing. The next moment, Louid moved like the wind and knocked Ian’s sword away. A blue streak remained in the path of his blade.

“Spare me. What I said earlier was a joke. Actually, Emilia could have come out from the wall that day, but she didn’t. So she must like you… no, love you, Your Majesty.”

Ian, who had fallen to the ground, rambled incoherently, not even knowing what he was saying. His sword had flown far away, out of reach.

“Do not dare speak that name so carelessly.”

Louid’s eyes darkened. He raised his sword high.

“S-spare me. Aagh.”

The next moment, red blood dripped from the tip of Louid’s sword.

In truth, he had deliberately exposed an opening even while being stabbed by the sword, and while Ian let his guard down, he killed him. The reason he dragged things out was because Emilia’s name had come up, and he wanted to hear even one more word from Ian.

He was originally a cold-blooded man. On the battlefield, he had neither blood nor tears. Only when it came to one woman was he weak.

“You are surrounded. Surrender.”

With Ian dead, the commander of the Kingdom of Billiot immediately raised the white flag.

As the commander lowered his sword, the remaining generals and soldiers also threw down their weapons.

Waaah—

The imperial army’s cheers filled the wide field before the walls.

The war ended anticlimactically.

Having lost the crown prince, the King of Billiot surrendered immediately, and this time the kingdom was not made into a vassal state but was annexed into the empire. The Kingdom of Billiot disappeared into history forever.

Louid first sent high-ranking officials and knights to govern the Kingdom of Billiot.

“As expected of His Majesty the Emperor.”

“He’s won every war since his days as a prince.”

“The empire’s territory has expanded like this all thanks to His Majesty.”

After returning safely to the imperial capital following the victory, the Emperor’s popularity soared.

***

“The war is over.”

Damian, who came down to the farm after a month, delivered the good news.

The war is over? Then Louid?

Emilia had been living in hell for the past month. Every day she worried whether something had happened to Louid.

“How is His Majesty?”

She carefully asked about Louid while hiding her true feelings.

“He’s safe.”

“Is he injured?”

“No.”

Hearing that Louid was safe, Emilia let out a sigh of relief inwardly.

A smile spread across her face. Seeing his sister smile for the first time in a long while, Damian smiled brightly as well.

“Let’s go to the clinic tomorrow.”

“Okay.”

The two always went out together. It had been quite some time since her last visit to the clinic, so she needed a checkup.

The next morning, after finishing breakfast, the two prepared to go out.

Spring arrived early in the village of Domer, located at the southernmost part of the empire. It was perfect weather for going out.

Emilia gathered her long blonde hair and twisted it up, put on a brown wig, and wore a wide-brimmed hat over it.

“This is the countryside, so no one will recognize the former Crown Princess’s face. Just be careful around nobles.”

“Okay.”

After finishing their preparations, the two got into a carriage together and headed to the clinic. The clinic she visited was near Count Dalton’s estate.

***

After returning to the imperial capital, Louid immediately went to Loren Palace. Going underground, he walked steadily along the corridor. With each step he took, the shadow on the wall lit by candlelight grew larger. When the shadow reached its largest, he came to a stop. It was in front of Emilia’s grave.

“Emilia, I’ve avenged you.”

He smiled for the first time in months. He finally had something he could say to Emilia.

That he had avenged her. So….

“I won’t tell you to rest in peace. Emilia, you must return to me. You have to. No matter what.”

He spoke toward Emilia’s coffin as if making a vow, like a warning. Then, with a slightly relaxed expression, he dropped into a chair and drank the wine he had brought. As he talked to himself about what had happened in the war, he even offered a drink to Emilia’s illusion.

A few days later, Louid summoned the empire’s finest painter.

“Paint a portrait of the former Crown Princess. As quickly as possible.”

He had the painter create a portrait of Emilia. He had brought back the portrait Ian had thrown away. It was stained with blood and covered in dirt, so her face could no longer be recognized, but to him it was precious.

But a single sheet of paper was not enough to ease his longing for Emilia. So he decided to create a larger and more splendid portrait of her.

“Yes, understood. Could you describe Her Highness the former Crown Princess’s appearance?”

“When she wakes in the morning, she smiles. When I see Emilia’s smile, my heart races. Sometimes she gets angry. When she pouts, she’s as cute as a squirrel. She’s different from ordinary noble ladies. She’s always diligently doing something.”

Louid spoke softly, smiling as he recalled Emilia. No matter how much he described her beauty, it wasn’t enough. As he continued talking about Emilia, the painter’s expression gradually darkened.

“It doesn’t resemble her. This isn’t her face. Paint it again.”

A few days later, when the painter showed him the sketch, Louid frowned and shook his head. He had other painters draw it as well, but the result was the same.

“Her Highness has platinum blonde hair, light blue eyes, and a bright smile. She often wore an ivory dress with a ruby necklace and earrings, and a tiara set with pearls.”

Only after Asher stepped in and explained did the portrait finally get completed.

“Make a doll as well. Life-size.”

Satisfied with the completed portrait, Louid ordered a doll to be made exactly like it, in the same size as Emilia.

***

“Your Majesty, now that the empire has stabilized, I believe it would be best to hold the imperial coronation ceremony and select an Empress.”

A few days later, at a council meeting in the grand hall, the ministers, as if they had planned it, proposed holding the Emperor’s coronation.

“Very well. I will hold the coronation for both the Emperor and the Empress.”

Louid, who had attended the council meeting for the first time in a while, readily accepted the ministers’ request.

“The Empress’s coronation as well?”

The ministers looked bewildered. An Empress had not yet been selected, so they could not understand who he meant. The former Crown Princess had recently been cleared of all charges and restored, but had she not died in prison?

“The former Crown Princess is not dead. Therefore, she will hold the coronation together with me. The Empress of the Richert Empire is Emilia Richert.”

Louid declared solemnly in a loud voice.