Uprooting such a sacred tree.
Apart from the Emperor’s impressive effort to console the Empress, it was hard to understand why he would extract the sacred tree from her beloved hometown.
If I were the Empress, I wouldn’t have been pleased by such an act. Considering the townspeople’s grief at losing their sacred tree, I might have felt guilty instead, as if it were my fault.
“The Empress is to be pitied.”
“Indeed. What the Empress missed most was her hometown’s sandy beach. Since they couldn’t bring the sea here, they made do with a small lake. If there were skilled magicians, they could have even recreated the salty sea breeze with illusion magic.”
Ian didn’t fully understand why I felt sorry for the Empress.
Back then, I realized that, being a commoner, I couldn’t comprehend the mindset of royalty. Regardless, the imperial palace of the Calobanian Empire was so vast that even an entire domain could be added without notice.
So, it was only natural that I got lost. It wasn’t because I was unusually bad with directions… it was the palace that was the issue.
“That’s beyond my ability. If there’s no wish I can fulfill, how about marrying me instead?”
Ian’s words made her eyes widen in surprise. She seemed to be weighing whether his words were a joke or not. Eventually, thinking it was a jest, she responded.
“Your Highness, there must be something wrong with my ears. I seem to have heard something strange. Could you repeat that, unless you were actually proposing to me?”
Ian felt a bit wronged. He was serious, yet why did she take it as a joke?
“I’ll say it again. Marry me.”
Did she understand this time?
Jane looked at him intensely, making an impression. Ian couldn’t help but smile when she looked at him so intently.
Strangely, even his stiffest expressions melted away in her presence, like frost under the spring sun.
Ian tried to suppress his laughter. If he laughed now, she would definitely take his proposal as a joke. She scrutinized his face as if trying to determine the truth of his words.
Ian freely admired her while she observed him.
‘I get it. She’s puzzled why I’m acting this way towards her.’
Ian, having known Jane for a long time, could roughly guess her thoughts just by her expressions.
She thought her exotic looks were not particularly attractive.
Ian could spend hours praising how her deep, dark eyes complemented her lovely smile.
She might not find her slightly foreign appearance beautiful, but to Ian, even that was very special.
But it wasn’t just her physical beauty that made Ian like her.
He was sure that even if she were under a curse by an unknown sorcerer and turned into an old woman, he would still recognize and love her at first sight. She was that special to him.
As expected, she seemed to take his words as a joke this time too.
Unaware of his feelings, she brought up the blacksmith. Ian couldn’t understand what was so great about a blacksmith hammering metal, that she would reject a proposal from a Crown Prince like himself.
The Prince decided that soon he would ensure that blacksmith could no longer operate in the capital.
When a hint of affection arose, it had to be sent far away. It’s ridiculous to send someone away just because you’ve grown to like them, as if it were nothing.
“The blacksmith’s rejection of my proposal because of a mere blacksmith is annoying, yet I always knew it was a joke to her.”
Despite wanting to spend more time with her, Ian had to attend an urgent official meeting due to his brother, Daniel, causing trouble.
Daniel was never much help, always causing problems.
“Because of a ridiculous dream that made me feel uneasy, I have to send Jane back to the pharmacy alone.”
Ian resented his younger brother for such thoughtlessness.
Resigned to the situation, Ian decided to send Daniel away from the capital to a distant place. It was clear that leaving him there would only lead to more issues.
When Daniel was left alone, he would likely start spouting nonsense about the royal bloodline being too thin and the nation’s security being at risk.
The Emperor had no other wives and no other heirs, causing concern among some that if he took another wife, they would fight for their position with Jane.
There was no way to leave the gossiping nobles alone with the Emperor’s decision not to take another wife.
These nobles were as foolish as Daniel, thinking they could convince the Emperor to take a second wife and place their daughters in that position. Such a thought was far from reality.
It was pointless to chatter about the future of the Calobanian Empire. The Emperor’s only concern was the Empress.
If a choice between the Empire and the Empress ever arose, without a moment’s hesitation, the Emperor would choose the Empress, even if it meant the demise of everyone else in the Empire.
Ian had no complaints about this. If he had to choose between the welfare of the Calobanian Empire and Jane’s safety, his choice would be clear and unequivocal, no different from the Emperor’s.
The Emperor’s sole focus was the Empress, and he did not wish to share her with anyone, not even their children.
It was natural for a parent to care for their child, but the Emperor even resented this, growing cold if the children garnered any of the Empress’s attention.
Ian detested the Emperor’s abnormal obsession with the Empress. He was withering away, unable to obtain her love, and it was evident every time he looked at the Empress.
At a young age, Ian had thought to himself that he would never become like that. However, it seemed he couldn’t escape his lineage. The twisted obsession of the Emperor was deeply ingrained in Ian’s blood.
At the age of six, a sudden feverish illness bewildered him. He suffered from high fevers day and night and was haunted by incomprehensible images in his dreams.
When the boundaries between dreams and reality blurred, his eyes turned red. Initially, this redness didn’t last long, but it was enough to throw his chief servant, Simmons, into panic.
Simmons summoned reputed healers to treat Ian, but Ian knew exactly whom he needed. When he demanded a blind pharmacist, Simmons was perplexed.
But since there seemed to be no other option and Simmons was intensely loyal, he would have followed Ian’s orders even if the young Crown Prince had asked for a sorcerer from the Kingdom of Stefan instead of a pharmacist.
Repeatedly losing consciousness due to the high fever, when Ian finally regained his senses and opened his eyes, he saw a girl’s face filled with concern.
Her slightly larger-than-average black eyes caught his gaze, and the first thought that filled his mind was, ‘She is mine.’
It wasn’t that Ian was easily swayed by others, nor was it because she was extraordinarily beautiful.
Of course, she had a soothing, gentle voice that eased anxiety, cute freckles on her nose, lovely red hair, and black eyes.
But even if she had looked different, it would have been the same.
Why She Is Still Unmoved (Female-dominant)
One-line summary: He uses various methods to seek her affection, but she remains unmoved.
Synopsis:
Si Qingyu is a doctor who has saved countless lives and enjoys tranquility.
Luo Shaoxuan is ruthless, deeply scheming, and the top young master in the capital. He admires Si Qingyu.
Luo Shaoxuan: I want to be the only one in your eyes and heart.
Features a cold and calm female lead vs A noble and scheming male lead.
There will be both sweetness and torture towards the male after their marriage.
