The Emperor and the Knightess

“Oh, that shouldn’t be an issue, Lady Stra. His highness is very lenient when it comes to things like that. As long as I am not marrying a descendant of a traitor or a mad man, and there isn’t a severe genetic disorder in his family, it should be ok.”

Poliana felt certain that Lucius the First would give her his permission to marry Frau. After all, Cekel was significantly beneath Sir Ainno but the emperor gave his permission to Sir Ainno anyway. Poliana couldn’t think of a reason why the emperor would be against her marrying Frau Sneke.

Lady Stra murmured, “Oh… I see… I guess… Alright… I suppose… but still… I was expecting…”

While Stra was deep in her own thoughts, Lady Tory said to Poliana, “Marquess, you need to think carefully about this. It might have been hard for you to find an appropriate man because you were focusing only on the men living in Yapa or Acreia. If you look further down south, I am sure you should be able to find a man of your age. And I am certain that all of them are in a better situation than Frau Sneke. If you are concerned about finding a man who is willing to change his family name to yours, then there are plenty of kingdoms in the south that are used to this custom, so…”

“But I don’t want a better man.”

“Pardon?”

Tory was confused. Frau Sneke was an unambitious and useless man. The world was filled with men that were so much better than him, yet why was Poliana saying she didn’t want a better man? Every woman wanted to marry the best man they could find, right?

But Poliana had a good reason for her decision. She explained, “Even if a man is willing to change his last name to mine, most men will still insist on being the head of the family. The problem is, I don’t plan on giving up control over my own family. I want to always remain as the head of my family.”

Poliana loved power. Was there anything greater than power in this world? Her name and status allowed her to do as she wished. She could command thousands of noblemen with a single order. When she walked the street in her blue uniform with the golden stripe, people moved aside to create a clear path for her. Power was what made life worth living.

Poliana had all the power in the world, and she didn’t plan on giving it up when she was in her own home. She swore to be in power both inside and outside her home.

Poliana continued, “Besides if I marry Frau, I won’t have to worry about dealing with the in-laws. He will do as I tell him to do. Since he is marrying me for money, he wouldn’t want to divorce me, which means that he won’t cause any serious problems for me either.”

“Well, if that is how you feel…”

This was the reason why Poliana didn’t want to marry a man with better qualifications. She was right about one thing; most men in a decent situation would never allow her to be in power in their relationship. Even if he did, the man’s family, friends, and acquaintances would make it impossible for him to live in such a way. This was why Frau Sneke was the perfect man for him. He was an outsider and he didn’t have any friends. No one cared about him, so they wouldn’t care if he lived a powerless life. His reputation was so bad that it could not get any worse anyway.

It was hard for the two ladies to agree with Poliana, and it was even harder for them to oppose her. Lady Stra and Lady Tory sighed quietly. They had always hoped Poliana would marry someone great. Poliana was in the position to choose her own husband, unlike all the other women in the world, and the ladies hoped that she would pick a better man than Frau Sneke.

‘But this is the reality.’

It was Poliana’s life and her decision. The ladies knew that they had no right to judge her. Lady Tory asked, “So will you be meeting Frau today?”

“Yes, I will first go to see the emperor and afterward, I will see Frau.”

“Are you planning on looking like that when you see your fiancé?”

Lady Stra shook her head and called for her maids. “Ladies, please bring me a brush.”

The maids moved quickly and expertly. Poliana got up, trying to escape, but she decided against it. She sat down again and thought in resignation, ‘Well… He is my fiancé now, but maybe I should look better…’

Perhaps a little change wasn’t the worst idea.

***

Only

Cekel murmured to herself quietly, “I guess this is really happening…” She felt like her head was going to explode. She was anxious and she couldn’t help it.

It began when the castle became short-handed when more than half the maids and servants left to visit Yapa. Cekel remained in the castle and helped out Lady Rebecca’s servants when needed. Because Lady Rebecca needed a lot of care, the maids and the servants were glad of her help. Duchess Nani brought her own maids too, but taking care of a sick pregnant lady was a lot of hard work. Because the servants were considered too low-born to touch the lady’s body, it had to be the maids who take care of Lady Rebecca closely. The problem was, the maids also hesitated to volunteer to provide physical care because it was hard.

Cekel quietly took it upon herself to do this job without complaints. She was high born enough to take care of Lady Rebecca, but because she was considered an insignificant noble among the maids, she didn’t mind doing the hard work.

Things deteriorated fast after the emperor left the Yapa castle. Duchess Nani, after she arrived, began to rule the castle as if she owned the place. The maids had no choice but to follow her orders. Lady Rebecca lost consciousness frequently and after the emperor returned, she passed away as she gave birth to the princess. Things happened so fast and there were so many new strange faces in the castle. While everyone was focused on Lady Rebecca and the new princess, a few strange things happened as well in the castle.

After Lady Rebecca’s death, the maids were moved to different departments. It was a common occurrence that the maids formed their own cliques depending on where they were from and who they served, but after Lady Rebecca’s funeral, this situation worsened.

The strangest of them all was the maids from Acreia. Cekel herself was from Acreia, but she was not an acquaintance of Lady Tory. Cekel always thought that since she was from Acreia, and they have been working together for a long time, she was part of the group. But when the maids returned from Nanaba, they began to treat Cekel like she was an outsider again; It was the strangest thing.

It was hard to explain what the problem was, but there was a clear tension in the air. And on top of this, Poliana, who returned from her self-punishment, announced that she was getting married, and her husband was going to be Frau Sneke.