The Slave Liberation Bill was going to be officially passed as a law.
Patricia thought to herself as the carriage headed toward the Royal Palace that things were bound to get busy from here on out.
If the bill passed, the first step would be to hold numerous discussions and allocate the necessary funds, then legally prohibit slave trading and slave ownership.
After that, they would have to locate all the people currently enslaved and secure their food, clothing, and shelter.
Furthermore, there would be the establishment of orphanages, and compensation for those who were currently slave traders.
There was a mountain of work to be done.
Patricia was determined to help Alex as much as she could.
In truth, slaves were everywhere in this town—even working inside the Royal Palace.
To eliminate such an entrenched presence in people’s lives would be impossible overnight.
It would take a long time to improve the situation gradually.
***
“Milady, we will be arriving soon.”
“Understood. Thank you.”
Patricia was eager to increase the clarity of their plans through discussion when the carriage stopped, and the door opened.
It was common knowledge that Patricia would arrive at this hour, but surely he would not be there ahead of her.
A gentle, warm breeze brushed her cheek, yet her heart grew cold.
A servant waited by the door, and a group of maids and knights stood to greet her.
“……”
Only those people were there.
She already knew.
It had been this way for years.
Scolding her own sinking heart, Patricia disembarked with the help of the servant.
“Welcome, Lady Frentia. His Majesty the Emperor awaits you.”
Receiving the greeting, she walked inside the Royal Palace accompanied by the guards.
Since she had arrived earlier than the meeting time, she hoped to rest briefly in the rose garden she and Alex both liked.
But what she saw there made her doubt her own eyes.
There was a fountain shimmering in the sunlight.
Flowers circled around it, and it stood at the end of a brick path.
There, she saw him.
“It’s alright. If you apply this, it’ll heal quickly. You won’t have to endure the pain anymore.”
“Y-yes… Thank you, Your Highness, Crown Prince.”
“You don’t have to call me that so formally. Just call me Alex.”
“……Alex, Your Highness.”
Her long, silvery hair with a bluish tint sparkled under the sun.
Her green eyes, glistening with a thin film of tears, gazed solely at Alex.
Her pale skin blushed red.
What a charming woman she was—so enchanting that even Patricia, a woman herself, was captivated.
How must Alex feel seeing that expression right before him?
“……”
His gentle expression conveyed everything.
Patricia turned on her heel and retraced her steps.
She was not allowed to leave like this; in a few minutes, she would have to appear before him.
She had to steel herself so that she could act as normally as possible then.
She instructed the guards walking beside her to prepare an appropriate room and to wait outside the door before entering alone.
Probably hastily prepared, a cup of tea sat on the table as she swiftly moved toward the window thinking, ‘That girl was such a lovely woman. She was probably about the same age as me. Someone fluffy and delicate, who made you want to protect her.’
‘Unlike me.’
“So that’s why he was in such a hurry.”
Though she was charming, her clothing was not a dress.
She was a servant working in this royal palace—a slave, the lowest in status.
To think the Crown Prince was alone with the daughter of a slave in such a public place.
If Patricia had not silenced those who had followed behind her, who knew what they might have said.
He must have cared for that girl so much that he didn’t even notice those around them.
“The Slave Liberation Bill seems to be for her sake…”
Each time he treated her coldly, Patricia’s heart ached quietly; now, that pain struck sharply.
They had been together since childhood.
Her parents loved each other, married, and raised Patricia with care.
Like those two, Patricia had desperately tried to become someone who could support him without becoming a burden.
“……So this is reality.”
—Even so.
Even if he never loved her from now on, Patricia was fated to become Empress.
That future was bound to come regardless of the Crown Prince’s feelings.
No matter how unhappy that might be.
“……It’s alright.”
She wiped the moisture from her eyes.
Taking deep breaths to steady her ragged breathing, she heard a knock on the door.
“Your time is up.”
“……Understood.”
She forced strength into her face.
There was no time for tears.
She just had to look straight ahead and move forward.
It would be alright.
She was used to holding it in…