The Young Master I Carefully Raised Became Obsessive
Ch. 115

Chapter 115: Side Story 1

Three months had passed since Rowell was imprisoned. During that time, Ardion and I had been incredibly busy.

Ardion was formally crowned emperor, and I attended the coronation ceremony alongside him. It was a tedious affair, but having Derol there made it bearable.

Occasionally, rumors trickled in from the prison. Word was that Rowell couldn't sleep due to the pain and looked like a shadow of his former self. Apparently, the forced labor had taken a toll on his body as well.

Considering the sins he had committed over the years, it felt only fitting. Perhaps dying swiftly would’ve been less cruel. The suffering he now endured seemed far worse.

Thankfully, Ardion had managed to persuade the Council of Nobles and was granted the authority to deliver the final verdict in Rowell's last trial. Had that not happened, we might still be living under Rowell’s shadow. Speaking of which, I just remembered something.

[“Everyone says I’ve been blessed with mana. Shouldn’t they finally put it to good use?”]

It wasn’t hard to imagine how Ardion had convinced the council. What mattered more was that no one opposed his ascension to emperor, not even the commoners.

After all, Ardion was blessed with mana and had proven himself on the front lines. There was nothing left to argue.

Duchess Heverun also played a big role in bolstering our reputation. Thanks to her, even as a former commoner, my position as empress wasn’t met with much resistance.

On top of that, news had spread that I had escaped from prison alongside those wrongfully imprisoned. That alone boosted my public image considerably.

The innocent were returned to their rightful places, and the guilty were punished. Those were satisfying days.

The only downside? We were too busy. Cleaning up the chaos Rowell had left behind gave neither Ardion nor me a moment to rest.

Typically, even the emperor and empress had official vacation days, designated times to unwind, but we couldn’t afford even that. The workload was overwhelming. Ardion felt terribly guilty about it.

“Laila, I’m sorry. If I don’t get this done now, it’ll just get worse. If I’d known it would be like this, I should’ve taken care of these things back when Rowell was still around.”

I understood. It was always better to put out fires before taking a trip. Still, what tugged at me wasn’t the work but Ardion’s attitude.

He was the one staying up all night dealing with the mess, yet he kept apologizing to me. He was the one working the hardest.

“It’s okay. I can wait as long as you need. And if there’s anything I can do, just let me know.”

At that, Ardion replied calmly, “In two months, we should be free. Let’s go somewhere proper then.”

And so, three months passed as we tackled one issue after another together. 

And today, it finally arrived—the day we had planned for our long-awaited vacation. We had wrapped most of our major responsibilities, and the timing was perfect.

Even the weather seemed to celebrate with us. The sky was clear, without a single cloud in sight, and the wind was still. It was perfect for travel.

“Master, I don’t think I’ve ever seen weather like this before.” Derol stood beside me, gazing up at the sky.

I nodded in agreement. “It really is the perfect day for a trip. But are you sure you don’t want to come with us, Derol?”

“Yes, Master. You’ve already done so much for me despite your busy schedule. Please take this time to truly rest.”

“No, Derol. Taking care of you was never a burden. In fact, you made me happy.”

Derol nestled into my hand.

I gently stroked his head. “Don’t worry about me. If you change your mind, just say the word. You can always come with us.”

“No, thank you. I actually have something to do here.”

“What is it?”

“I heard there’s a rat infestation in the palace. I thought this would be a good time to meet with them and get the palace cleaned up.”

The palace had always had a rat problem. Some of the more skittish servants were desperate to catch them, which never sat right with me, perhaps because I’d once received help from the rats.

I gave Derol a soft pat. His words gave me some comfort.

“I’ll tell the servants not to harm the rats.”

Derol’s eyes sparkled. “Thank you, Master. You really are the best.”

He rubbed his head against my hand, then his body followed. I couldn’t help but smile and gave him more gentle strokes.

While I was chatting idly with Derol, a knock came at the door. I glanced at the clock. It was time to leave.

I slipped Derol into my pocket, turned around, walked to the door, and opened it.

Ardion was standing there. As soon as our eyes met, he said, “Laila, it’s time to go.”

A servant stood nearby, ready to care for Derol.

I handed Derol over gently. “Please take good care of him.”

“You have nothing to worry about.” The servant bowed and stepped away.

I waved to Derol, then looked at Ardion. “Can you make sure no one tries to catch the rats in the palace?”

“No rat-catching?”

“Yeah. Derol wants to convince them to help clean the palace.”

Ardion thought for a moment, then turned to his attendant and gave an instruction. The attendant nodded and left the room.

Now, it was just Ardion and me. I glanced at the empty space where Derol usually was and said softly, “Do you think they’ll take good care of Derol?”

“Don’t worry. The person we hired knows a lot about rats. And thanks to you, there are more people training them now.”

“Really?”

“There’s even a department dedicated to studying rats at the academy.”

That was news to me. To think that people who once only saw rats as pests were now changing their minds. It was surprising and surreal. As we chatted about all sorts of things, we left the palace.

Waiting outside was Ardion’s black carriage, the one he usually traveled in.

“So… where are we going?”

He pulled me closer and answered, “It’s a retreat traditionally used by emperors and empresses. It’s by the sea. There’s a lake nearby and plenty of places to relax and enjoy.”

The thought alone lifted my spirits. After being cooped up in the palace, a change of scenery was more than welcome.

Ardion opened the door for me with a smile. I returned the smile and climbed in. Once he joined me, the carriage began to move.

The scenery shifted quickly. We passed the tall buildings of the capital and entered wide open plains. Despite the chilly weather, lilacs bloomed in shades of violet and white as far as the eye could see.

“Ardion, is this… a lilac field? They just keep going.” I turned to him.

He only nodded, not looking surprised at all, as if this was completely expected. Something about his calmness made me suspicious.

“Ardion… don’t tell me…”

“They’re your favorite flower. I thought it’d be nice if you could see something you love on the way.”

“You had all these lilacs planted… just for me?”

He nodded again.

I stared at him, momentarily speechless, then frowned. “That’s too much. You spent money just for my enjoyment, and it’s taxpayer money, isn’t it?”

Since we’d worked together on the imperial budget, I’d grown pretty sensitive about money. 

Ardion simply shook his head. “I used my own inheritance for this.”

“Still, it’s a bit…”

Sitting beside me, he gently took my hand in his. “Laila, the people needed work. Planting these lilacs brought in money for the villagers nearby and for the nursery workers.”

His words caught me off guard.

“There weren’t many big projects recently. People were struggling. This gave them a chance to earn money.”

I had nothing to say to that. Maybe I had been been thinking too narrowly.

Ardion looked at me, his voice soft but firm. “And Laila… you deserve to be treated this way. I don’t want you to think anything I do for you is a waste.”

His tender tone made it hard to respond. It struck me the difference between how Ardion and I thought. Maybe it was inevitable. I’d lived as a commoner; he’d been born into royalty. Of course we saw the world differently. Realizing that made me feel small. Once again, Ardion was showing me a world bigger than I’d imagined.

At that moment, I felt a gentle squeeze on my hand. When I looked up, he was gazing straight at me. His eyes had darkened, serious now, as if he had something important to say. Or maybe I had missed something.

“What is it?” I asked cautiously,

He said without looking away, “Laila… why didn’t you tell me?”

“Tell you what?”

“That you were pregnant.”

His voice was quiet, but his gaze was sharp. My mind went blank.

T/N: Finally we can talk about it, been waiting for ages…