At my words, a strange light flickered in Alois’s eyes.
I was about to continue, thinking I had him…
When a warm sensation touched my lips.
His lips pressed against mine, leaving me no room for words, and I had to frown.
But it was only for a moment.
As if it had only been to silence me, he pulled away, and I pressed my lips with the back of my hand.
“Are you pushing yourself?”
I was just about to say something when Alois spoke first.
He looked at me bitterly. That gaze made me close the mouth I had just opened.
“To say you’d give me anything I wanted…That doesn’t sound like the Lady Emilone I know.”
“But isn’t that what you want?”
“No, not at all. I do wish to borrow your power, but not like this.”
What Alois wanted was my power and authority.
If he wished, I could even make King Eseah apologize.
“Then tell me how because I’m in a terrible mood right now and I feel like I have to do something.”
I was upset.
I felt uncomfortable from the moment I saw King Eseah.
I was angry, annoyed.
That gaze that tried to wrap me up, like Alois’s, but with arrogance. It bothered me.
It felt like he wanted to devour me whole if I made even one wrong move.
“Why are you upset?”
“Because of your father.”
“What kind of rudeness did my father show you, Lady Emilone?”
He slowly knelt on one knee.
Looking up at me, he asked gently, as if trying to soothe me.
The pounding in my chest began to settle.
“It wasn’t rude. He was actually very polite.”
“Yes, please go on.”
Alois spoke as if he were above me.
That made it hard to continue.
“But…King Eseah resembled you too much, and it made me uncomfortable.”
“Me?”
“Not in looks. But the way he acted, like you…”
I glanced down at him and twisted my face in disgust.
An old king approaching me like that. It was revolting.
“I didn’t like how he tried to seize and manipulate me.”
He resembled Alois, yet he was very different.
The king’s behavior repulsed me.
But Alois…Alois was different.
He was special to me.
In fact, I liked the way he acted like he could devour me.
“When you do it, it doesn’t feel so bad.”
At my words, the serious look on Alois’ face vanished and his expression relaxed.
“Of course not. Can an old king with countless lovers and children possibly compare to me?”
“Haa…”
I let out a sigh.
Alois, seeming pleased, stood up and leaned closer.
“Lady Saintess, since you say you’ll grant anything I wish…”
I nodded.
Alois smiled brighter than I’d ever seen.
It wasn’t a fake smile either. It was more beautiful than any smile I’d ever seen.
It felt like all the anger and fatigue I was feeling had melted away.
As I stared at him, entranced, he spoke without losing his smile.
“Please stay by my side forever.”
***
The next day, the king sent a letter of apology and an invitation to the noble council.
I readily replied that I would attend the meeting and burned the apology letter.
I didn’t need a fake gesture.
“Well then, I’m off.”
“Please go safely.”
I draped a thick shawl over my shoulders, looked at myself in the mirror, and headed out.
When I arrived at the assembly hall, the servants opened the doors with polite formality.
There were more than a dozen nobles seated inside.
Among them was the crown prince, but his appearance was so plain that he hardly stood out among the flamboyant nobles.
As I was guided, I sat at the highest seat of honor.
They all watched me cautiously, but soon began flipping through their documents and started the meeting.
They were supposedly high-ranking nobles, and true, they all carried themselves with dignity.
But their conversations didn’t reflect that.
Though they didn’t show their dirty intentions openly, they were all eager to protect their own interests.
I sat with a straight back in calm silence.
Since I said nothing, they began speaking among themselves.
I quietly observed while they seemed engrossed in a serious conversation.
As I continued watching them, one nobleman glanced at me.
When our eyes met, he cleared his throat and spoke.
“Come to think of it, I heard His Majesty intends to bestow the title of Grand Duke upon Prince Alois.”
So here it was, the real topic.
There could only be one reason they dragged me into a nobles’ meeting like this.
It was to have this conversation.
After a long preamble, we were finally getting to the point.
I lifted the glass in front of me.
Cold ice clinked against the glass.
When I didn’t respond, they began to speak more openly.
“But no matter how we consider it, giving the Grand Duke title to His Highness Alois is—”
“The Grand Duke title should be given to a royal who has achieved the highest merits—”
Wasn’t that Alois?
They clearly didn’t like the idea of him gaining power.
Even if he was an easy-to-handle prince, it was a different story if he rose to a high position.
They must have feared his abilities too much to leave him in a puppet role.
That might be what I thought, but it didn’t seem like that was the true purpose of this meeting.
“But he is the Saintess’ companion. It’s not our place to speak.”
“Well, of course, a companion should at least hold the rank of Grand Duke.”
Their conversation went on and on.
It was so hollow and repetitive that I nearly yawned just listening.
“Lady Saintess.”
“What are your thoughts, Lady Saintess?”
“Prince Alois receiving the Grand Duke title…”
In the end, all of them turned to look at me.
Truthfully, this was all a behind-the-scenes maneuver.
At a glance, the meeting seemed like it was opposing Alois receiving the Grand Duke title but in reality, that wasn’t the case.
They feared the idea of Alois gaining power.
But given that Alois gaining some form of power was now unavoidable, what they truly wanted was to prevent him from taking the throne.
“Is my opinion really that important?”
They were telling me, in essence, that even the Grand Duke title was too much for Alois.
It was the same as saying, don’t even dream of the throne.
I sighed and asked, and the woman seated closest to the front responded coldly in surprise.
“Of course. His Majesty said that Your Holiness’ opinion should be regarded with utmost priority.”
I wondered how I looked to them.
Maybe they thought lightly of me because I was young.
I sat silently for the entirety of the meeting and maybe they thought I couldn’t speak or that I didn’t understand the contents of the discussion.
They probably thought I was just as easy to handle as Alois.
I tilted my stiff neck back slightly and smiled faintly.
“Do you all believe that Prince Alois, the Fourth Prince, is unfit for the title of Grand Duke?”
I was no fool nor an easy pawn to be manipulated.
And neither was Alois.
If anything, Alois could now remove the kind, obedient mask whenever he wished.
That mask was just something he wore to protect himself.
And now, I was by his side.
“I believe he is unfit.”
At my words, everyone shut their mouths tight like clams, except one person.
I turned toward the direction of the voice.
It was none other than the crown prince, who had, until then, remained silent like me.
I hadn’t paid him much attention.
Now, with his sudden words, my gaze shifted to him.
A man of rank equal to the empire’s crown prince. And with that status came a sense of arrogance he held toward me.
“He’s a child who can do nothing but play clever little games with that smart head of his.”
His eyes looked sharp.
I rested my chin on my hand and listened to him.
I acted like I was inviting him to continue, and he rambled on, like a fish in water,
“To sit on the throne, one must know how to command those beneath them. That is impossible for Alois.”
He must have had a lot bottled up.
The other nobles seemed to agree, nodding along.
“Besides, he’s never even participated in state affairs. It’s doubtful he could even properly manage a territory if we gave him one.”
His eyes were burning with desperation to tear down Alois.
He must have suffered quite a bit under Alois to act this way. He was even grinding his teeth as he spoke.
And his tightly clenched fists were tremble.
“The title of Grand Duke? To grant Alois such a position solely because he’s the Saintess’s companion is…”
The crown prince’s eye twitched.
He didn’t resemble the king at all.
He looked nothing more than the King’s puppet.
The resentment leaking through his angry face made me think he was a little pitiful.
But from what I could see, the crown prince didn’t seem suited to be a ruler either.
“Wouldn’t you say it’s more than he deserves?”
He couldn’t even hide his own emotions, acting like a child.
Still, he must have been somewhat aware of the eyes on him because he was trying to keep it together.
Just as I was about to slowly refute those words, there was a knock at the door of the meeting room.
Everyone’s attention, which had been locked on the crown prince and I, scattered.
“This is Alois Eseah. I’m coming in.”
It was Alois’s voice.
Without waiting for a response, he opened the door without hesitation. Like he had no interest in being refused.
The nobles looked at the entering Alois in surprise, clearly caught off guard by his arrival.
Feeling all of their gazes, Alois turned toward the crown prince.
When their eyes met, Alois immediately spoke like he was waiting for this.
“So this is what you’ve been thinking of me.”
Alois let out a slow breath.
He looked nothing like the gentle image he had shown before the nobles.
His sharp, almost cold eyes swept across the room.
Those who met Alois’s red gaze stiffened.
Even his twisted lips and low voice were enough to send chills down their spines.
I half-rose from my seat at his sudden entrance but let out a sigh and sat back down.
“What a shame, elder brother.”
Alois had decided to take off the mask.
*.*.*
- Honey, I’m Going on Strike – Chapters 47 – 49 - November 22, 2025
- Honey, I’m Going on Strike – Chapter 44-46 - November 14, 2025
- Honey, I’m Going on Strike – Chapters 42-43 - November 8, 2025