How To Save The Endangered Empire

The Situations In Which You Are Honest

Ashton!? What is he doing here!? She thought.

By chance, Ashton had caught Emris while coming out of his office. Ashton, still holding Emris after seeing her, kept his face hovering remarkably close to her, their breaths mingling as they lingered in an unexpected closeness. He stared at her with no shame and kept his eyes focused on hers. He supported her back as her hand stayed glued onto his shoulder.

Pulling away, her eyes filled with irritation.

Where did he come from? He popped up out of nowhere! I swear my luck has gotten worse after entering this world.

Internally, Emris cried painfully, feeling the jab of the world acting against her when her quick glare at Ashton caused her to notice.

Huh? He's staring at me so expectantly...wait a minute, don't tell me. He wants me to thank him? Haaa... let's get this over with quickly.

Emris expressed gratitude for the things people did for her, even if it caused her nausea doing so. Masking the unpleasantness in her eyes, she put on a face full of gratitude, but her tone of voice sounded of hatred. "Thank you for preventing me from falling, Your Majesty."

Her gaze not once met his. Meanwhile, he focused on her as if fused to her face. Ashton scoffed and crossed his arms. Leaning back, a smug smile tugged at his lips. "You have a way of turning gratitude into arrogance, but seeing as you lack refinement, I'll overlook it this time."

Emris's voice was laced with disdain, yet her smile ceased to fade from her lips. "I find that ironic, Your Majesty, considering the improper greeting you gave me last night."

The tension boiled like the fuming steam of a boiling pot as their eyes locked onto each other.

I'm so sick of this! I don't want to be in a room with him or even see him from afar. I'm just going to be blunt and reveal my true feelings, hoping it keeps him far away from me.

"I hate you, Your Majesty." Outright, as she had thought, she spoke with an unwavering tone that broke down her eyes of kindness. "I thought it best to be honest since you must feel the same way about me."

Ashton's eyes wavered, his whole body taken aback by Emris's declaration. He did not like her either but never expected her words to be brutally honest when she had always hidden it.

"Though what you say is right, I can't help but think it a threat to my life." Taking a step forward, his face contorted his features into an expression of suspicion while he rubbed his chin.

Raising an eyebrow and scoffing, Emris confidently stepped toward him. "As the daughter of a loyal vassal to the Imperial Family, I would never take measures to threaten your life, Your Majesty."

Her brows furrow ever so slightly, not a single trace of doubt found on her face. "It's merely my stance on our relationship for the future. I'm implying that I wish for us to stay away from each other and never come in contact again. No more than a little."

Before him, Emris stood with a posture assuming sturdiness, her shoulders squared and her spine straightened, declaring her readiness to face any consequence that her honesty might bring.

"Do what you want; your affairs don't interest me. As for your declaration, I don't feel the same; how I see you is the same as everyone else." His lips remain straight, devoid of any sympathy. It is a look that seemed to freeze the air around him, bringing an unyielding coldness to the very atmosphere.

Is he saying that I'm not even someone he hates? The way he talks really gets on my nerves, so much so that I want to punch him for such little remarks.