Chapter 324

In a way, Tory was probably having a tougher time than Poliana lately. Poliana climbed up from the bottom to get where she was. The other knights respected the time she spent on the battlefields, especially because they witnessed her talent. Tory, however, was a different story. She was given her current position by the emperor and she hasn't proven herself yet. People respected the emperor and therefore followed Tory's orders to an extent, but Tory had a long way to go before she gained their respect and acceptance as well. Poliana thought sympathetically, ‘She's probably having a really hard time right now.' If it was Rebecca, she would've screamed, “This is too hard! I hate this! I hope everyone dies!” If it was Stra, she would've just cried.'

But this was Tory, and Tory chose to endure it quietly. She refused to share her hards.h.i.+ps with anyone.

Poliana murmured, “It must be tough…” She was giving Tory a chance to rant, but Tory shook her head and replied, “Stra is helping me out a lot, so it's okay. You heard Stra became the second head of the maids, right?”

“Yes, I heard about it when I got here.”

Originally, Lucius the First offered the same position to Stra as he gave to Tory. Stra, however, refused, feeling uncomfortable with the position that never existed before. She said she would rather take a well-known position, and in the end, she became the head of the maids.

‘Oh my G.o.d.'

Poliana was surprised to hear the details. Her butler only told her that Stra became the head of the maids, but he didn't tell her how she came to this position. Poliana couldn't believe how generous her emperor was in hiring his ex-wives. There was even a rumor that the emperor was in love with them.

In a way, Poliana was also impressed with both ladies, who agreed to work in the castle.

‘I guess they are stronger than I thought.'

Poliana asked, “Then Stra is here as well…?”

“Yes, she works mostly in the lady's quarters. She said she is too busy today to join us, but she would really appreciate it if you drop by to see her.”

Tory suddenly smiled and added, “Speaking of Stra… She told me that she knew about this for a long time.”

“Umm… about what?”

“How his highness is in love with you, Marquess.”

So finally, Tory brought up the topic of the year. This was especially strange since it was the ex-wife of the emperor who was talking about this subject.

Poliana became rigid, shocked, and uncertain. She would've preferred if Tory threw a cup of cold water at her or even slapped her. Poliana tensed, but Tory just sighed. It wasn't that Tory was angry at Poliana. Tory explained, “Haa… I can't believe how slow I have been. It was happening right in front of my eyes, so how could I not have noticed it? I'm ashamed of myself. Stra said she had known from the very beginning. She said that every time his highness looked at you, his eyes would s.h.i.+ne brightly…”

“Not me. I wasn't like that.”

When Poliana replied edgily, Tory laughed and continued, “If you were the one in love, we would've all known about it immediately. I think it would've been very obvious.”

Tory thought it was a good thing that it wasn't Poliana who fell in love with the emperor first. In fact, this was a very good thing. If this knightess fell in love with the emperor first, this story would've ended tragically. Tory was certain of it because she knew that Poliana the knightess, who was honest and obedient to the emperor, wouldn't have been able to accept her own feelings.

Tory said to her, “I realize that we, Stra and I, have no right to bring up such a subject, even if it is the most popular rumor nowadays.”

Well… Actually, the ex-wives of the emperor probably had more rights than most to bring up this very subject, but Tory smiled and continued, “But we still wanted to talk to you about it as your friend. Stra loves this situation, by the way. She said she has been secretly hoping for something like this to happen for a long time.”

Poliana blinked slowly. So in addition to the princess's maids, the emperor's ex-wives were all for Poliana marrying the emperor. Why were people okay with this situation? Why was everyone happy for her? Poliana couldn't believe it. She desperately wished someone would come up to her now and scream at her about how wrong this was.

When Poliana didn't say anything, Tory added, “I'm going to remain neutral until you make your decision. Whatever you do, I will support you completely, Marquess”

Tory was now the second ally, next to Sir Donau, but Tory's reason for her support was different from that of Donau.

“Marquess Winter, Stra thinks that the happiness of you and his highness would be the best outcome, but I feel a little differently. Even if you choose the path that might lead you to unhappiness, I want you to be the one making this decision. Even if you choose the path that will no doubt bring you sadness, as long as you have a logical reason behind it, I am sure it will be the right decision.”

Tory gave up a comfortable life on purpose. If anyone else gave this opinion to Poliana, it would've been inappropriate, but Tory was the one person who could say such a thing without sounding fake.

“And Marquess, I also heard about the birth of the prince. What an honor.”

“Umm… Does Stra know about that too?”

“No, this fact will remain a secret to most people for a while longer. I was told only because my position requires me to know these things. Once you marry the emperor, I will be there to take care of many things for you. Oh, now that I think about it, perhaps his highness created my position in order to help you, Marquess, in case things happen the way he wants. He might have done it subconsciously or intentionally.”

“Well, at that time, I was actually preparing my wedding with Frau Sneke, so I don't think his highness would've been thinking about me…”

This was definitely not something Poliana thought of before. If Tory was right… It wouldn't matter if it was intentional or not. Poliana couldn't help feeling guilty. Tory was very proud of her position. If she wasn't the ex-wife of the emperor, things wouldn't feel so complicated to Poliana.

Fortunately for her, Tory didn't care about these things at all, and she had one more thing to tell Poliana, “Of course. His highness is a very thoughtful man, however. I think that perhaps since he wanted to marry you, but he thought he couldn't, he probably considered marrying someone like you. And if he did, then he would need someone like me to help the future empress. But there is something else I want to tell you. Please don't forget that the choice is yours. It is your right.”

“The choice?”

“Yes, you're not the one being chosen; you are the one choosing.”