Became the Tyrant’s Pet

“……I know right!”

Mia made an effort not to cry, but tears poured out of her eyes.

Adillot looked at her with a puzzled expression. 

Mia Celestiel looked straight into his eyes and said.

“Adil. I have something to tell you.”

Adillot’s eyes widened slightly.

The knights who pretended not to hear the conversation were also startled.

It was arrogant to call the emperor by a nickname, but Mia Celestiel had not yet been charged with treason.

Adillot was strangely not in a bad mood, and the voice he had forgotten came to mind.

‘Adil. My dear son.’

Because of Empress Dowager Chrysor, he didn’t have any of  Empress Leah’s things, including portraits.

He thought he had forgotten everything.

Looking at Adillot, who did not get angry, Mia said firmly and earnestly.

“Adil was too young back then.”

He wouldn’t know anything about the details.

Mia seemed to have cracked the walls he had built up desperately.

“No, even if you’re not young……It is not a sin to want to survive.”

As Mia said that, pain flashed in her pink eyes.

“No one can hold it against you. Including Empress Leah.”

“What do you…….”

“I don’t know! That’s right, I don’t know anything!”

Mia exclaimed.

“However, I am certain that it was not anything that a nine-year-old would have to endure!”

Mia squeezed Adillot’s hand.

“Adil…You were only nine years old then…You were too young…”

She burst into tears as if she couldn’t take it anymore.

Adillot was at a loss for words. It was the second time he had seen her sobbing.

Her cry was as severe as the first one.

She didn’t cry quietly like other noble girls. 

With a frown on her face, she cried like a child without minding her image.

“The saddest person is Adil, so why don’t you feel comfortable grieving…….”

Adillot couldn’t help but stare blankly at her. 

It felt like something that had filled his heart for so long had been lifted.

Deep down, he felt that he had no right to mourn for his mother’s death. Because he turned away from his mother as he was afraid.

But Mia was saying it was okay now. 

Seeing her cry, Adillot realized. 

Maybe he should have cried like that back then.

Mia, who was trembling and crying like a child, showed the image of himself as a nine-year-old.

“……”

He hesitated and took Mia’s hand. Without saying anything, he watched Mia cry.

* * *

Adillot’s political affairs ended at night. 

It was past midnight.

Joachim and Ferdinand were in front of him, rising from their chairs after their reporting.

“Did she really help the treason?”

Ferdinand responded immediately to Adillot’s murmur.

“We cannot be certain of anything at the moment. Mia Celestiel is, above all, excessively obedient. This adds to the suspicion.”

“That’s true.”

Adillot nodded lightly.

“It seemed as though she had known me for years.”

He remembered her pale skin and peach-colored cheeks. Her chin and slightly drooping eyes were like a puppy.

Her pale pink eyes shone surprisingly sweetly and gently when she looked at him. 

Although she smiled with her white teeth exposed, he knew she was sometimes afraid.

However, she addressed him by his given name without fear.

He couldn’t even recall the last time he had been treated so comfortably.

Adillot folded his arms and shook his head.

“She seemed to know about your mother.”

“If you think about she is the mastermind behind the treason, then Mia Celestiel will undoubtedly know.”

As if he had heard of the incident today, Ferdinand replied sternly. He did not like the fact that she dared to call the emperor by his given name.

On the other hand, Joachim smiled gently and remained silent.

Adillot glanced at him.

“What do you think, Joachim?”

“……I don’t believe Lady Mia was complicit in Count Celestiel’s treachery.”

“What is the reason?”

Joachim tapped his cheek with his finger.

“Her thoughts appear right on her face.”

That’s for sure…

The three men thought of Mia at the same time. 

She was more expressive than others.

There were also times when she became expressionless as if she knew everything. 

However, she had a lot of expression most of the time.

“It could be an act.”

Ferdinand was still suspicious of her.

“Marquis Quito is an excellent knight, don’t you know it better than I do? A reaction like that is not something that can’t be faked.”

Ferdinand’s brow furrowed.

His impulse to contradict was strong, yet it was hard to do so.

Joachim smiled and shrugged.

“Well, I’m not a professional as well, so I just observed her facial expressions and actions.”

“……But it is true that Mia Celestiel financed Count Celestiel’s treason.”

“Perhaps she assisted without realizing it, Marquis Quito.”

“Did she not meddle with the usage even after obtaining such an enormous sum of money? That’s ridiculous.”

“That part is weird. That part is weird. Ordinary people are bound to be materialistic to some extent. Especially people in business.”

Having said that, Joachim lowered his eyes.

“…She’s a very strange person. The more I talk, the more curious I get.”

“Nevertheless, it is not advisable to jump to conclusions until Count Celestiel is apprehended.”

“I concur. His Majesty cannot constantly be there to ‘watch’ over her.”

His blue eyes turned towards Adillot. 

It was the eyes of a wise man who used to make people shudder when looking at him.

But Adillot didn’t even blink.

“If you have anything to say, Joachim, say it properly. That’s why I put you in this position.”

“Haha. I just didn’t know that holding hands is included in ‘watching’ her.”

“Cough.”

Ferdinand coughed a little. Joachim was clearly a courageous man; he uttered things most couldn’t do. Adillot crossed his arms.

And after a while, he nodded.

“I’ll be careful.”

A smile appeared on Joachim’s lips. He was determined to follow the emperor because of this trait of his.

“I have a suggestion.”

“Tell me.”

“How about testing her?”

“Testing her?”

Adillot asked.

“Yes. Marquis Quito is worried, so it wouldn’t be a bad idea to test her, even if it was simple.”

“How?”

“Report everything she does through writing. It’s not that tricky, so it won’t take long to prepare.”

Adillot hesitated for a moment to answer. He remembered Mia crying.

“Adil… You were only nine years old then…You were too young…”

Adilot could have predicted how Ferdinand and Joachim would react when they knew about the incident before. The wise Joachim would say,

‘Even lions lower themselves when necessary. It was the right choice strategically. Although Her Majesty the Empress Dowager has a title, you are aware of the truth, and hence this conflict will always end in Your Majesty’s triumph.’

Ferdinand, a loyal servant and knight, will give a shorter answer.

‘I will do so as well.’

He was grateful to both of them. But obviously, something was different from Mia’s words. Mia seems to regard him as a ‘Adillot’ rather than a ‘Emperor’.

‘……Even so, she was the traitor’s daughter.’

Adillot sighed and rose to his feet.

“I’ll watch her until dawn tomorrow. Go back, both of you.”

“Her escort……”

“Enough.”

Adillot touched the dagger at the waist in a ruthless way. Ferdinand nodded his head. The emperor he served was also an excellent swordsman.

Before leaving the door, Adillot yawned and added a word.

“Oh, right. Call the old man and tell him to come.”

“If you say the old man… … Are you talking about Lord Giroti?”

“Yes. I’ll have to listen to the old man’s opinion.”

“All right.”

As he left the room, Adillot passed the quiet hallway. 

And the moment he opened the bedroom door, he stopped.

“……”

Mia was curled up like a rabbit in the corner of the wide bed.

Why was she in that position?

Adillot covered his mouth with his hand, feeling like he was about to laugh. 

And he inched closer.

Mia’s cherry blossom-colored hair was scattered over a white duvet like petals.

Her face was a mess. She rubbed her eyes so hard that the corners of her eyes were red and filled with dried tear stains.

Adillot silently poured water from a nearby water bottle and wet his sleeve. Then, sitting next to Mia, he wiped Mia’s eyes with his wet sleeve.

“Hmm…”

Mia frowned and groaned as if annoyed. 

Seeing her sleeping peacefully, Adillot burst into laughter without realizing it.

“She really confuses people……”

The moonlight quietly shone on those two.

* * *

Mia woke up again to the sound of a bird. He was on Adillot’s bed, but Adillot wasn’t there. 

What happened in front of the prison suddenly came to her mind.

“But I know that it wasn’t something a nine-year-old would have to endure!”

Mia covered her face with her hands, then started screaming and pounding the pillow with her fists.

“Ahh! What was I talking about!?”

They were in front of the prison, so many knights saw them.

She was a pet that spoke nonsense to the emperor out of nowhere.

It was so absurd, yet Adillot listened to it all… 

“Ahh! No matter how I look at it, I’m an over-emotional drama queen!”

At that moment, I remembered the expression that Adillot had made. He looked a bit bewildered. And he didn’t say a word until Mia stopped crying.