Mother to the Love Interest

Chapter 18 - Getting Ready

"Who's going to be watching the realm while the Emperor is away?", Ophelia asks. She looks over the sheets of paper detailing the upcoming trip. She was simply skimming through it, what she had read so far was very detailed.

The Marshall languidly sips the tea that was prepared, "The Prime Minister, your Imperial Highness". He replies, taking another sip. "He will be keeping the Emperor up to date with everything concerning the Empire by sending a messenger weekly. If there was anything of concern, he'll be notified immediately. There's nothing to be worried about, your Imperial Highness, the Emperor has chosen a great time to begin his tour."

Ophelia hummed distractedly, more focused on reading what the Emperor had planned for the trip. After all, it is the very first tour that he plans on leaving behind as a tradition to future generation rulers. This tour needs to be successful and go without a hitch.

The Yearly Trip is a new tradition that the current Emperor created. It's a trip or tour that either the Emperor, himself or a representative, must take every four years across the Empire, passing through the four main capital cities; Anchester, Plolis, Estergend, and Srufart. It is his solution in dealing with people doubting his skills as a ruler. Although he won the rebellion against his father, he had also lost a few things along the way. One of them being the trust of the people. In a way, the trip is a way for him to reinvent himself in hopes that they might see him as a benevolent leader and to prove that he's different from the previous Emperor.

When they first heard of it, the people were ecstatic to finally meet their ruler up close without having to travel for hours to only view his palace from afar. The trip hadn't even begun and the common citizens loved him, seemingly forgetting about the haunting rumors that they had heard about him. However, it's the nobles who are far more difficult to persuade. During the rebellion, only a few noble families had supported the current Emperor. Others had deserted him, most of them were easily dealt with, though there were a few that he couldn't touch even as an Emperor.

These few people happened to be one of the five families that had helped the Kolgrim Dynasty at the very beginning, which was centuries ago. As a token of appreciation, the very first ruler of the kingdom raised their status and rewarded them with a fraction of his land.

For years, the previous Emperor would blindly give them money whenever they asked, without even bothering to inquire what they might use it for. What he knows is as long as they don't bother him with the matters of the Empire, he'll let it slide. Every day the old man spends his days either drunk or too horny to care about anything else. He hadn't even noticed the horrible life that his people lived. For years, they lived in poverty and fear. It wasn't much of a surprise why a rebellion fought against him.

The trip was partly to let both the people and the nobles know that the current Emperor cared about them and that he was watching their behavior.

The tour will last two or three months and had to be planned months ahead before the day the Emperor or his emissary sets off. They will move in a precise manner with knights at the front, sides, and rear. The Emperor's horse will be joining them as well, as he plans to ride into each city. Before Ophelia had decided to come along, he was planning to spend the tour riding beside his comrades, but now the plan has changed and he has to spend some time with her in a compact carriage.

The thought of being in the same carriage as him sends a cold shiver down her spine.

"The papers will only inform you and your servants of matters during the tour, but I'm here to inform you of matters before," the Marshall begins. "Both of the monarchs will walk out hand in hand. Before the tour begins, the Emperor will make a speech to the people. The Head Priest will then bless the trip and you'll both be set to depart."

"Alright, thank you for the documents, Marshall Reinold", Ophelia passed the document to Sandhya who stood beside her. Marshall stands, wiping the crumbs of the biscuits he'd indulged in while she was busy reading the details about the tour.

"Yes, certainly, I'm always happy to serve you, your Imperial Highness."

As soon as the door shut behind the Marshall, Ophelia turned sharply towards Sandhya. "Make sure only experienced maids are allowed to participate in this trip. Pack anything that might be of importance. Remember that this is not merely a trip back home to meet father, but my first appearance as the Empress. I need this to be perfect."

Yes, this trip is the very first appearance and the first duty she has as Empress. The first impression the empire's people have of her is very important. She has an idea of what her role will be during the entire trip, she has to converse with ladies from all kinds of different noble families, all the while boosting not only her very own reputation but also the Emperor's, which is quite difficult. This trip is quite important and if it ends successfully, perhaps she could persuade the Emperor to give her more work in the future.

Without a doubt, the trip will be very draining, but at least at the end of said trip, she'll be reunited with her beloved lord father who she hadn't seen for quite some time.

~ . ~

Far away in a deep forest of Ethyrion, a group of robed figures gathered in the dark wilderness. The night was so still and quiet that the only sound that could be heard is their labored breathing. They stood waiting for someone to speak, their masked eyes looked around at one another. Just when they thought that it was a waste of time, another robed figure walked into their circle.

"Everything is going as planned." His deep rough voice filled the quiet.

"The Emperor was truly mad when he suggested this nonsense," A voice chimes in.

"He is naïve and proud of his rebellion", another voice said. "Let the man be. It'll make it easier to kill him,"

"Precautions still need to be made, security will be tight with the heir around, we should expect some difficulty."

"We have to see how the first plan goes, is our inside man in position?"

"Yes. They know what's at stake here. It's either this or someone will lose their life", it was difficult to read one another's face while wearing the robe, yet they didn't need to see the dark smirk of the figure to know that he found both choices amusing. "By the end of this trip, there will be no monarchy left to rule."

Edited by Mei