Chapter 2: To Open One's Eyes
A middle-aged noblewoman appeared before Sienna's eyes . Sienna soon realized that the woman was a reflection in the mirror .
This was the first dream she had after realizing that she was the emperor in the dreams . The definite proof of her realization was right in front of her eyes .
—This is . . . the future me .
Even though she was much older, Sienna could tell right away .
Blue hair mixed with silver and golden eyes . Her cheeks were a bit more slender, and her eyelids were thinner, revealing sunken eyes . The fresh vitality of Sienna's twenty-year-old complexion was nowhere to be found .
Twenty years . . . or maybe more time had passed . Sienna couldn't tell what her exact age was .
The current Sienna was at the peak of her youth . Like every young person, Sienna never imagined what her older self would look like . She suddenly began to realize the universal truth that every person was marching towards their deaths .
Sienna felt strange to see her future self like this, but there was one thing that Sienna liked about what she saw .
Her eyes .
Within those eyes, she could see the many years of experience she had gained . It was something that the current Sienna could never obtain no matter how hard she tried . The wisdom of the years was reflected in her eyes .
Sienna could see the ladies-in-waiting walking back and forth behind her through the reflection in the mirror . They were helping the emperor with her wardrobe . Two ladies-in-waiting fastened a cape onto her shoulders . The elaborate embroidery on her coat was beautiful but intimidating .
The bustling ladies-in-waiting stood back and lowered their heads .
"Is it finished?"
"Yes, Your Majesty . "
"Let's go . "
The emperor turned around . The sturdy door opened as the emperor approached it . She walked along a long corridor . There were circular, engraved columns along the passageway . The path went along the courtyard and stretched out to the side .
Sienna knew where this path led to . She had gone this way before .
—Are we going to the throne room?
The fragmented sunlight cast a shadow on the emperor . Sienna estimated the time of day by the length of the shadow .
—The midday break has ended, and now it's afternoon .
She felt like she knew where the emperor was going and for what reason . It was time for the imperial audience . It was the basic responsibility of an emperor .
The way an emperor reigned was revealed in his imperial audience . How much time he devoted to the imperial audience, who he met with . . . This was all decided by the emperor himself .
In previous generations, there had been emperors that had never had an audience with a nonaristocrat . There were also emperors that spent all day listening to the requests of the common citizens .
They had almost reached the throne room when . . .
"Your Majesty! Your-"
An urgent call, a scrambling noise . As the emperor began to walk faster, the surroundings blurred as it passed by . Some distance away, she could see a group of knights and attendants dragging someone away .
"Halt!"
The emperor approached the group that was now standing still . A middle-aged man had fainted and was limp as he was being dragged by the knights by both arms .
"Who is this?"
A knight answered her .
"This man lied about his identity . He trespassed and dared to try and enter the throne room in order to scorn you, Your Majesty . "
"What is this man's identity?"
The knight hesitated before he replied .
"He's an official that assists the envoy from the Kingdom of Peroh . "
"The envoy? He could have just followed procedures and scheduled an audience . Why did he decide to deceive and trespass instead? Was he plotting to hurt me?"
"We will interrogate him and find out . "
The emperor stared at the knight . Sienna couldn't read the emperor's thoughts, but she felt that the emperor was glaring at the knight . The emperor then spoke to the attendant at her side .
"Search this man's pockets . "
The attendant searched the unconscious man's clothes .
"Did you find anything?"
"No, Your Majesty . "
"Then are you telling me that a man trespassed all the way over here to hurt me without carrying a weapon?"
The knight couldn't answer back .
"When he wakes up, bring him to me . I will question him myself . "
"Your Majesty . "
The emperor turned her head at the call .
"I rushed over here when I heard that a wicked man had caused a disturbance here . "
—Hmm .
Sienna let out a groan . She finally saw someone she recognized . Of course, this person had also aged considerably . Still, he was the spitting image of his father, that old man, so Sienna was able to recognize him quickly .
Doug Rimone .
He was the eldest son of Duke Rimone as well as Patricia's older brother . In other words, he was Sienna's maternal uncle .
—You've aged a lot, Uncle .
Sienna laughed as she spoke the words her uncle couldn't hear . Unlike her last two dreams, Sienna was feeling a bit lighthearted . This was because she realized she was experiencing a miracle from the gods . She was peeking into her future .
"You didn't have to hurry over here for such a trivial matter, Duke Rimone . "
"What do you mean by 'trivial'? How can a matter related to your safety be considered trivial?"
Doug clicked his tongue as he looked at the unconscious man in the knights' arms .
"That man came all the way here . . . "
"Do you know him?"
"I heard that the Kingdom of Peroh is undergoing a crisis due to the monarch's inadequate governing . The public sentiment is split, and half of the people want him dethroned . That man is a representative of those people . No matter how much one claims to be a loyal subject of the Empire, interrupting the emperor from doing her duties is not proper . I only worry that it will spoil your mood, Your Majesty . I will take him away . "
" . . . Alright . "
As Sienna listened to the conversation between the two, her heart sunk . For some reason, she didn't feel these two had a good relationship .
As she saw her uncle through the eyes of the emperor, Sienna felt that her uncle seemed a bit cunning . She didn't have any context about this situation, but Sienna felt that her uncle was trying to hide something . She couldn't shake off this feeling .
—Can't you notice it? Or are you just pretending not to?
Sienna criticized her future self even though she knew her words wouldn't be heard . The emperor's gaze fell on the envoy from the Kingdom of Pero for a moment before turning away . She was about to enter the throne room before she suddenly stopped .
"I will postpone the imperial audience . "
The emperor turned around and walked back .
"Son of a bitch . "
Sienna clearly heard the soft words that were spat out through gritted teeth .
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