The Empror's Trap

"I always wondered why Her Majesty would break protocol to grant Marshal Kenji a royal title. Even with his outstanding merits, such a hasty conferment seemed unusual—now it appears Her Majesty likely had plans all along..."

"Well, blame Chancellor and Prince Dani's group. Why couldn't they be content as princes instead of causing trouble? Now look what's happened—it seems Her Majesty intends to bind herself directly to the Grand Marshal. And what did the Chancellor and Prince get? Nothing good. At this point, house arrest for the rest of their lives is probably the lightest punishment they'll receive."

These whispered conversations among ministers went unseen by most. These ministers weren't fools; with years of experience in officialdom, they had generally guessed why Pluvia had welcomed Kenji into the palace. In fact, this was a strategy that needed no concealment.

This method was highly effective, provided that the Grand Marshal was loyal and trustworthy to Her Majesty. But judging from the ambition and tactics the Grand Marshal had previously displayed, he could hardly be considered a great loyalist. Under these circumstances, Her Majesty's behavior was equivalent to a high-stakes gamble.

She was betting that she could control Kenji.

While everyone was still discussing, Kenji appeared in their view.

Kenji, dressed in his official robes, strolled leisurely toward them, spotting the group of ministers at the bottom of the steps from a distance.

He waved, and several ministers from the group moved forward to greet him.

"Congratulations on your royal title, Grand Marshal. Your achievements are truly outstanding."

"Haha, you flatter me. I merely benefit from my father's legacy."

After exchanging pleasantries with everyone, Kenji looked toward the great hall: "Her Majesty hasn't arrived yet?"

Reminded by his question, everyone suddenly realized that it was already quite late, yet Her Majesty still hadn't arrived for court, which was extremely rare. Since Pluvia had begun governing, she had always been punctual for court assemblies. It was strange that she would be so late today.

Kenji also found this odd.

Court assembly wasn't necessarily the most important occasion, but being late was still inappropriate.

"Perhaps I should go and ask?"

Kenji looked at those present and realized that few people had the authority to ask the emperor what she was doing and why she wasn't attending court. So he would have to go and ask himself.

With this in mind, he bypassed the great hall and headed toward Pluvia's bedchamber.

Naturally, not just anyone could enter Pluvia's chambers. Royal Guards stood at the entrance, with the Imperial Army patrolling nearby. The Imperial Army was easy to deal with; seeing Kenji, they didn't hesitate much, simply greeting him and letting him pass.

The Royal Guards were different, however. The female Royal Guards specifically responsible for protecting Pluvia stopped him.

"Lord Anos, please wait here. Her Majesty hasn't come out yet."

"The ministers outside have been waiting for some time. I'm concerned that something might be wrong with Her Majesty, so I've come to inquire," Kenji didn't mention that the ministers had been waiting too long and were confused, but simply said he had come to check.

"There's no problem. Her Majesty is just... feeling a bit under the weather and isn't sure if she can attend court."

"Under the weather?"

This was normal. The temperature had dropped significantly in recent days, so it was quite natural for her to catch a cold. It seemed rather serious, given that she was uncertain about attending court.

As Kenji stood outside wondering if she would emerge to preside over the court assembly, the main door of the bedchamber opened, and a Royal Guard came out carrying a stack of documents. She whispered something to the Royal Guard at the door.

That Royal Guard nodded, then turned to Kenji and said:

"Her Majesty's verbal decree: 'I am unwell today and fear I lack the strength to attend court. Since you have come, you might as well convey and handle some matters on my behalf. After the court assembly, organize all court affairs and submit them to me for review. I am sending Sonya to accompany you, confirming my entrusting you to preside over the court assembly on my behalf.'"

After conveying Pluvia's order, the Royal Guard presented the documents to Kenji. he briefly looked through them and found nothing particularly significant; most matters were already settled. In essence, he was just going through the motions on Pluvia's behalf.

"I accept the order. I hope Her Majesty takes care of her health. After the court assembly, I will visit Her Majesty."

Taking the documents, Kenji couldn't help but smile as he turned away.

It seemed that Pluvia indeed intended to completely bind him to her. This way, Kenji no longer needed to worry about being eliminated by Pluvia at any cost in the short term.

.............

At the court assembly, the ministers finally received the summons from the guards at the front of the great hall, and everyone entered.

However, unexpectedly, they did not see Her Majesty.

They only saw Kenji standing beside Her Majesty's throne.

"???"

What had happened? Where was Her Majesty?

"Everyone, Her Majesty has caught a cold and is unwell today. Therefore, I will be presiding over state affairs on her behalf. If any of you have urgent matters today, you may inform me, and I will relay them to Her Majesty after the court assembly."

As Kenji spoke, he gestured to Sonya beside him. Understanding, she stepped forward without speaking, merely moving to stand behind Kenji—which was enough to explain everything.

The ministers looked at each other in confusion.

Wait, what was going on?

We had just been wondering why Her Majesty was late for court, and now Duke Anos was deputizing for her?

What kind of arrangement was this?

Considering that Kenji had previously been arranged by Her Majesty to move into the harem palace...

Oh no! Something wasn't right!

If this continued, would it eventually become rule from behind a curtain?

"Um, Grand Marshal..."

"Yes?"

"Today, none of us have any urgent matters, so perhaps we should just adjourn," they said.

It was truly impossible to continue. The main purpose of court assembly was for ministers to communicate face-to-face with the emperor to handle important matters. With the emperor absent, they dared not treat Kenji as they would the emperor—what would the emperor think?

"Indeed, that makes sense," Kenji understood their thinking. "However, there is still one matter. Regarding my affairs, you should still discuss this with me."