Chapter 96: Live To Sienna Pt.96
If the bottom of a lake was irregular, there was a current down there called a vortex. That's why most of the invisible lakes have water with sweeping currents and tends to drown people who were unable to float on time. It would be relatively safe if the floors were even and there were no currents.
"It was because of the god's blessing. Behind the lake is the temple of the goddess and next to it is a very large altar. Sometimes, after a ritual there, the altar there fills with flowers, but the flowers there never wither."
"The flowers don't wither? Has Shaylin ever seen it in person?"
At Sienna's question, Shaylin shook her head.
"It's a sacred place where the goddess stays, so people like me shouldn't step into those grounds with my feet. The chief of the village told me stories from time to time, so I only listened to them. But I'm sure the lake and the temple are beautiful places."
"Yes, it must be beautiful."
Sienna said, stroking her hair.
"I really want to go there someday."
"After listening to Shaylin, I've been wanting to go there, too. I think it would be a really nice place."
If she has a chance... Sienna thought so. She was wondering about the altar that the mysterious lake and the flowers held that didn't wither.
*
It was time for Carl's forces and Valore's forces to engage in an endless dispute over the throne. News of the war came from the front. The news was that Castro, who had been making endless provocations, launched a full-scale invasion.
The atmosphere in the capital city froze cold. The battle between the nobles became fiercer as he could not remain away from the throne forever. Valore's forces insisted that the current one of royalty in the capital should succeed the throne, while Carl's forces insisted that the throne should be taken up by someone who can control the military at such a time.
The argument between the two forces appeared to be a tense confrontation, but the weight was quickly lifted and tilted towards the other forces. The reason was that the throne could not be left empty forever, but the fact is that most of the nobles were forced to take the initiative of Arya to the side of Valore's.
Sienna stayed only in her residence until the emperor of Valore was determined, but she did not receive any visitors except for Jamie, who occasionally visited.
Meanwhile, other news came to the capital, with roads and land routes linking the southern region to the capital being buried by landslides. The problem of road loss in the southern part of the country, which is not the capital, was quickly buried in another story.
This is because rumors were rampant that Empress Arya had spent a lot of money to establish Valore as emperor. The story was that there was a gemstone in the arms of the nobles who had met her. In particular, there was a rumor that a lot of red jewelry was sprayed around that time, when a red jewelry shortage occurred in the jewelry market, adding credibility to the rumor. Arya did not express any position.
It wasn't until a month later that the rain, which had lasted so long, finally showed a hole in the sky, and a blue sky was revealed for the first time in a long time.
The imperial family was bustling with preparations for the emperor's coronation. In comparison, Sienna's living palace was quiet. Even the aristocrats, who had been asking to visit her from time to time, stopped short of their steps.
"In the end, the Second Prince was appointed to the throne of the Emperor. The servants serving under the Second Princess said that they haven't been preparing to move into the empress's palace at all. It seems she will be using the same palace as she is now."
"Lady Marie has made a concession.
"She said she'd like to stay in the palace she is staying in already, so the maids and girls are complaining. They were all excited to move into the Imperial Palace."
The imperial palace of the empress and the imperial palace of the Second Princess was different in size. The palace was located right next to the main palace where the emperor lived, but it was also called the Twin Palace because it looks exactly like the original palace. In comparison, the emperor's royal palace and the empress's royal palace were located behind the main palace, which was different in size from the original palace, so it was more like a mansion than a palace.
Sienna's current residence was also a three-story mansion with only a name of the palace. The size and location of each palace also contained symbolism, which showed that power was concentrated around the emperor.
"The Second Princess has such a good personality that she must have yielded to the Empress."
"Yes, but I would have wanted it moved as soon as possible."
"I know."
Sienna answered helplessly with her chin in her hand. Hain looked at her sullen face and asked.
"Your Highness, are you feeling any ill?"
"No."
Hain wondered if it was because Carl couldn't ascend to the throne and because Valore became emperor, but that didn't seem to be like the reason. Since the Emperor's death, her master has never met with anyone as if she had no greed. But she was wondering why she looked so exhausted, and Sienna said first.
"Have you heard anything from the front?"
"That's all the news I heard last time. The news is that the frontlines are more intense than we thought."
"Sigh."
Hain looked at Sienna's worried face and said, "If you're worried, how about you write and send a letter? If you write me one, I'll do whatever I can to ask the messenger to deliver it well."
"That's enough. What kind of letter..."
'When I read history books, I heard that in the past, there used to be a means of transportation called a portal. I wish it were still here...'
In the past, when magic existed, it was possible to communicate with people from a distance in real time, and even wizards could use teleport magic to travel long distances in a flash, and even ordinary people could use it as a portal to travel long distances in a flash as long as they had money. However, now that the magic has disappeared, only the traces have remained as relics.
In fact, Sienna has written a letter blaming the magic civilization that has been dead. There were dozens of letters written to Karl in the bedroom alone every night actually.
The letters, which began with 'Dear Carl,' were often cut off from writing about useless weather stories and the current situation here. She couldn't write down the line she wanted to ask about the most.
How are you? Are you healthy? Are you okay? When will you be back? Don't you want to see me?
She wanted to fill in this question mark, but she couldn't finish one proper letter because she couldn't write it. Although she didn't worry about his wellbeing because she was sure, her anxiety of whether she made the right choice or not has been eating away at her day after day.
Only
The war began a week earlier than in the past and has been said to be more intense. There have been a series of letters and stories about the conscription of troops, asking for the war to be prolonged. It added fuel to Siena's anxiety. It was definitely changing a little bit from the past.
As in the past, the emperor died and Valore rose to the throne, but the timing was different. Because of herself, Carl stayed in the capital until just before the war began, so he could not reach the border on the day of Castro's massive attack.
It was only a minor difference, but it was certainly different from the past. Then, Carl could have faced a different outcome from the past when he safely ended the war.
The anxiety kept her awake all the whole time. She wanted to see Carl's face and make sure he was safe. But the war had just begun, so for a long time, he had to stay on the battlefield.
Sienna felt frustrated at being stuck in the capital with nothing to do. She wrote a letter yesterday and wrote a sentence in the corner of the letter that she had not unwittingly finished.
/I want to see you./ (Gothic style)
It's not a big word, but above all, it was a sentence that expressed one's mind the most accurately now. She wanted to make sure he is safe. She missed him.